Senate halts FBR’s plan to purchase 1,010 vehicles worth Rs6 bln

The Senate’s Finance Committee has directed the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to halt its plan to purchase over 1,000 vehicles worth Rs6 billion.The decision was made during a meeting chaired by Senator Saleem Mandviwala, where committee members raised concerns over the FBR’s proposal to buy vehicles for its field staff despite a significant tax shortfall.FBR officials explained that the vehicles were intended to improve revenue collection by enabling field officers to carry out their duties more effectively.Senator Saleem Mandviwala questioned whether field officers used to travel by bicycle and called for the suspension of the vehicle purchases.Senator Faisal Vawda, highlighting a tax shortfall of over 384 billion rupees, strongly opposed the plan, calling it a potential scandal and an example of corruption.Vawda demanded that the FBR withdraw its purchase orders, emphasizing that the focus should be on addressing the tax shortfall before making such expenditures.He further stated that if the vehicles were purchased, he would take the matter to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB