GST issue disputed, Jang Group not a defaulter
KARACHI: The Jang Group is once again being punished for depicting the true picture of society and keeping the people abreast of the latest development and for exercising freedom of expression. According to details, the statistics presented in National Assembly’s Friday session regarding Geo for not paying GST were exaggerated and against the facts.
However, the spokesman of Geo/Jang said the Jang Group had already taken recourse to the court on the issue of unjustifiable demand of GST. Beside other legal issues under the relevant provisions of Sales Tax Act, if any person collects any tax or charge, whether under misapprehension of any provision of this act or otherwise and the incidence of which has been passed to the consumer, he shall pay the amount of tax or charge so collected to the Federal Government. The advocate of Independent Media Corporation (PVT) Ltd Dr Farogh Naseem said while pleading the constitutional petition before the Sindh High Court argued:
1) The sales tax is not applicable to Independent Media Corporation (PVT) Ltd.
2) That the sales tax so far collected by Independent Media Corporation (PVT) Ltd was due to misapprehension of the law; and
3) That the incidence of sales tax collected by Independent Media Corporation (PVT) Ltd has not been passed on to the consumer, therefore, it cannot be paid to the Federal Government.
The above constitutional petition is pending at Sindh High Court (SHC) and the Jang and The News had published news stories in this regard. The decision of the higher judiciary is yet to come out; however, the court had issued a stay order restraining the government for taking any action against Independent Media Corporation (Pvt) Limited (IMC) until the final verdict is delivered.
To name the IMC as a defaulter of the GST in the NA session on the part of the government is a pressurizing tactic against the company and accordingly IMC reserves the right to embark on judicial action in this connection, after consulting its legal advisers. The matter of GST is a disputed issue and IMC is not a defaulter. The spokesman said matters relating to Geo are different from other channels of the country and the government’s counsel had accepted the same in the high court.
The spokesman said that Geo and Jang had taken principled stand to side with the movement launched by lawyers and the civil society for the independence of judiciary. Resultantly, the government of the then military dictator Gen (R) Pervez Musharraf had imposed emergency and closed down all the private TV channels on November 3, 2007; however, all the channels were allowed to re-open immediately except channels of Geo network. The ban on Geo TV channels persisted for long. The government advertisements were banned for the newspapers of Jang Group.
During this period Pakistan-India cricket series was also played and Geo network had obtained expensive rights to telecast this series on Geo Super but due to ban on channels of Geo network, cricket fans in Pakistan could not enjoy the series besides financial losses of billions of rupees to the group. A suit has been filed in the High Court of Sindh in this regard.
According to the spokesman, the government was completely determined to harming Geo network and Jang Group and its businesses; some private and non-government advertisers were stopped by government functionaries for giving ads to the Group. This led the Group to suffer massive financial losses and the repercussions of the same are still being sustained, as Geo telecasts were banned in Pakistan, however, the Group kept on its production as per routine. These telecasts were shown abroad and on the Group’s website but no advertisement came its way, causing the Group to plunge into dire straits. It may also be noted that in these difficult times, the Group did not fire any one of its employees.
The spokesman said the financial losses affected the cash flow of the group for long time and the Group had to go full length of a year to reach its former level of income. However, the after-effects are still there, which are resulting in issues like GST to crop up.
Due to issuing of notices to different advertisers by the government department, various large advertisers stopped payments to Geo network; consequently, a handsome amount of Rs500 million still remains unpaid by these advertisers.
The refund worth nearly Rs100 million owing to the excess payment by the Group under income tax is still owed by the government to the Group for long. The government also has to pay to the Group nearly Rs170 million for advertisements, stalled by them since long.
Under the circumstances, the present government like its predecessor is quite poised to disrupt the Group’s sources of income and to cap it all, it is being urged upon paying huge sums of money summarily. And, the relevant departments are being pressurized to deal the Jang Group with an iron hand and not to care about the rules. The laws/rules provide a framework for a relationship between the department and the taxpayers but we are not extended that kind of relationship but are being dealt with in a hostile manner. In this connection, the former high-ups of notorious Accountability Cell are being deployed in the Departments.
The spokesman said it is nobody else but the government itself who is strangulating the Group financially; in contrast, it is constitutionally binding upon the government to protect the rights of citizens to do business and to create enabling environment. In fact the successive governments have themselves squeezed the group financially then how they can ask for payment of such huge amounts.
The spokesman said the large government ad campaigns are not being given to the Group. The present government has deprived the Group of the government’s ads worth about Rs250 million. National Bank was asked to immediately withdraw its financial facilities offered to the Group. Jang Group filed a suit in the Sindh High Court which issued a stay order restraining the Bank from taking any action against the Jang Group.
An affiliate company of Jang/Geo filed applications for nine channels, which were denied altogether. And, later on, the rules and regulations were altered to make provision for not allowing channels to the Group. Contrarily, the TV licenses were issued to others in this while. A petition has been filed in Sindh High Court in this regard also.
The spokesman said Jang Group had some rights of government radio FM-101 under an agreement, which were later on withdrawn by the government. This step had landed the radio in hot waters financially. On the other hand the group was not issued the contract of STN, a TV channel under government control although the tender was won by the Geo/Jang Group. The contract was passed on to someone else. The group has filed a petition on this matter also.
Crores of rupees were paid for DTH (Direct to Home) licence; but it was kept at bay in the era of military dictator Pervez Musharraf and the present government also has put this on hold politically. The Group has gone to Sindh High Court on this issue also. It is worth mentioning that in this regard an important man in the government had said to someone, “This will go to them over my dead body.”
The spokesman said President Asif Ali Zardari said in a public meeting that a media group deems itself very powerful and thinks that it could pull down the government and install the government of its choice, adding that it has established monopoly. People are witness that for a long time the ministers and advisers of the present government are continuously running campaigns against Jang Group. Posters and banners are being displayed in various cities and nefarious propaganda campaigns are running against the Group on web. We have also gone to court in this regard.
The spokesman said that government is stopping the private sector to release advertisements to Jang/Geo Group. The government is making efforts to drop down the ratings of Geo; on the basis of which, it receives ads. It should be remembered that some previous governments too coerced the related departments to issue notices worth billions of rupees to the Jang Group for depicting the true picture of the society, its stand on freedom of press, providing correct information to the people and showing the real faces of the rulers. However, whenever in the past the Jang group was under siege it knocked the doors of the judiciary. The spokesman said the rulers want us to go to them, so that they solve our problems on ‘their conditions’. It is always very easy as well as attractive to settle issues with rulers on their terms and get benefited. The people who enter such mutually beneficial deals enjoy the fruits but the Jang Group never compromises on principles.
Countless and constant govt actions show it is against press freedom and committing political victimisation. The spokesman said, “We have been apprising the people of truth and will keep doing the same, as this is our esteem, prestige, our honour and our emblem and we will keep this up at all costs.” “We want our country to emerge as the homeland with rule of law, security of the people’s rights, stable economy and thus, Pakistan should come out as a strong and prosperous country on the map of the world.”
The spokesman said if the government thinks that the Jang Group is doing something wrong, it can also go to the court.
Renowned lawyers including Abdul Hafeez Pirzada, Barrister Khalid Anwar, Makhdoom Ali Khan and Barrister Muhammad Farogh Naseem are pleading the cases of the Group in all above matters in the High Court of Sindh.
Source: The News
Date:5/17/2010
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