AG‚ FM refuse to reveal details

Office of the Attorney General (AG) said the government cannot reveal the names of Value Added Tax (VAT) evaders under the existing legal provisions.

Finance Ministry had asked its opinion on the issue after National Information Commission had directed the ministry to reveal VAT evaders’ detail citing application filed by Freedom Forum.

The name of VAT evaders cannot be revealed since Right to Information Act, Income Act and VAT Act protected Right to Privacy of tax payers, the Finance Ministry has quoted the Office of Attorney General in a letter sent to National Information Commission.

However, citing dissatisfaction over the Finance Ministry’s decision of non-disclosure of information on tax evaders, chairperson of Freedom Forum Taranath Dahal has filed another appeal at the National Information Commission. Dahal appealed with the commission after finance secretary Krishna Hari Baskota refused to give details of ‘VAT scam’.

“It is the last appeal,” Dahal said, adding that the Finance Ministry should provide detailed list since Finance Minister Bharat Mohan Adhikari himself has dubbed fake VAT bills as ‘equivalent to printing fake-currency notes’.

“Police arrests the persons, who are involved in printing fake-currency notes, Dahal said, questioning why the state is protecting those who are openly looting the national coffer through fake VAT bill.

“No existing law and legal provisions in the country can save VAT defaulters,” he said, adding that every public body is obliged to furnish the information about the issues of public importance under the Right to Information Act.

“It seems that there is ill-intention to save VAT evaders involved in multi-billion rupees VAT scam by not disclosing their detailed information,” the appeal read.

Earlier, the National Information Commission on July 12 had directed the Finance Ministry to provide the information of Value Added Tax evaders’ within three days or furnish appropriate justifications stating why it should not publish VAT evaders’ name.

The commission had asked the Finance Ministry after Freedom Forum filed an application seeking details of VAT evaders. After not receiving the name list of VAT evaders from the ministry, the forum had filed th case at the commission seeking its help in getting the information.

The government has failed to meet the revenue target in the last fiscal year after many years as the VAT evaders bleed the government coffer blue.