FAISALABAD: Industrialists are up in the arms about the deployment of employees of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) at the textile units, demanding their immediate withdrawal.

The FBR says it has started withdrawing the employees from the textile units which have paid the evaded sales tax. However, it has rejected the demand of the unit owners regarding the complete withdrawal of the staff.

The board has deployed employees at various textile units and other industrial units under Section 40-B of the Sales Tax Act to check their production. The move was made after the FBR detected discrepancies in the sales and purchase of the mills through which sales tax worth mil-lions of rupees was evaded.

The All Pakistan Textile Processing Mills Association (APTPMA) office-bearers did not like the move and started opposing it since its start. The association, in collaboration with the Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry, had given a strike call on May 13. But both the entities failed to convince the millers and traders, except a few, to close their units and shops. The second call for the strike was given for Tuesday but it was withdrawn by the APTPMA after meeting with DCO Noorul Amin Mengal who assured the milers that their grievances would be conveyed to the government.

According to sources, some members of the association criticised the office-bearers on having a meeting with the person who has no relevance to the issue. They say the DCO, an employee of provincial gov-ernment, has nothing to do with the affairs of the FBR which is a federal entity and the association should meet the officials of the FBR or finance ministry to resolve the issue permanently.

Waheed Khalig Ramay, chairman Council of Loom Owners Association, says deployment of FBR personnel at units is one more threat from the FBR which is disturbing the industrial units.

He says it`s time to stabilise the industry and stop units from total collapse that are facing problems like energy shortage, liquidity crunch and end of zero rating regime. The exports are already 13pc down and the industry, dependent on exports,is underthreat ofclosure.

Mr Ramay says Section 40/B is a threat to industry while adding that the unit owners should also stop tax pilferage. He says some units are reluctant to show thenames of their back-end parties who send to them fabric for dyeing or printing as the parties are not registered and the chain would not be completed without them and if the names of back-end parties are disclosed to the FBR officials they would approach them allegedly for bribe and threats.

An FBR official, requesting anonymity, says the board will continue busting the tax evaders to ensure the rule of law and the regional tax office Faisalabad has withdrawn its staff from mills that have deposited the tax.

`Deployment of staff will continue until real record of sales and purchase of the suspected mills is obtained,` he says, adding that during last five months the FBR detected more than one dozen tax evading units in Faisalabad that later deposited tax with the national kitty.