Khattak slams gas cess on K-P

PESHAWAR: Chief Minister Pervez Khattak has termed the Gas Infrastructure Development Cess (GIDC) levied on K-P and other small provinces “discriminatory, anti-business and unjustified”.

In a statement issued through a handout on Wednesday, Khattak said the GIDC was being imposed only for the benefit of Punjab as other provinces are self-sufficient in terms of gas production. “Why should gas consumers of other provinces pay for infrastructure to be built only for Punjab?” he questioned.

Khattak said the cess was first introduced through the GIDC Act 2011, but was declared illegal by the Supreme Court of Pakistan. He added the review petition of the federal government had also been dismissed.

He maintained that gas is a subject covered by Part 2 of the Federal Legislative List and therefore the approval of the Council of Common Interests (CCI) was mandatory before presenting the GIDC Bill before Parliament.

He said the provinces were being bypassed by ignoring the CCI.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 21^st, 2015.