FBR DC bears the brunt of raid on PTI candidate's factory ahead of Senate elections

ISLAMABAD – A raid on a counterfeit cigarette factory allegedly owned by Faisal Saleem, Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf (PTI) candidate for Senate election, has cost a Federal Board of Revenue officer dearly.

Arshad Abbasi, Deputy Commissioner of FBR-Peshawar, had reportedly sealed a factory owned by ruling party leader Faisal Saleem after conducting the raid this week.

 Soon after the action, the authorities transferred Abbasi from Peshawar to Quetta.

Earlier, a report revealed that federal tax regulators faced difficulties to pursue a tax evasion case against the cigarette company.

A squad was formed under Sales Tax Act 1990 and Federal Excise Act 2005 to take action and a notice was served to the company. Later, political pressure withdrew the notification.

Faisal Saleem, who was the vice-chairman of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Board of Investment and Trade (KP-BOIT), had alleged that FBR was blackmailing him. He had denied owning the illegal cigarette company while the FBR’s stance was that the factory was being run by a company, registered in Mardan and owned by the family of Faisal Saleem.