Local traders blocked the Muhammad Ali (MA) Jinnah Road in Karachi yesterday in protest against the enforcement of the General Sales Tax (GST) on electricity bills.
The imposition of Rs. 6,000 GST per month on K-Electric (KE) electricity bills for retailers had led them to stage the protest at Jama Cloth Market.
The traders claimed that the electricity bills are already comprised of sales tax, income tax, fuel adjustment charges, and additional taxes, and added that the “collection of general sales tax from consumers is a total injustice”.
Earlier in the day, KE, the sole power utility in the metropolis, had asked the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) for another hike of Rs. 11.39 in the tariff under the fuel adjustment charges for June.
KE’s spokesperson had explained on Thursday that the fixed GST that has been imposed on the electricity bills of commercial consumers would not benefit the company itself.
The spokesperson added that KE has no objections to eliminating the sales tax on the electricity bills, which was announced by the federal government in the ongoing fiscal year’s budget for all power distribution companies, but the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) officials have not announced any amendments yet.
