Don’t collect income tax from pvt univs

The Supreme Court yesterday directed the National Board of Revenue not to collect any income tax from the private universities across the country until further order.

The apex court, however, allowed the government to move separate appeals before it against the 2016 High Court verdict declaring illegal the government imposition of 15 percent income tax on private educational institutions, including private universities and private medical, dental and engineering colleges.

A four-member SC bench headed by Chief Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain gave the orders after hearing 44 leave-to-appeal petitions that the government filed challenging the HC verdict.

Talking to this newspaper, Omar Sadat, who represented two private universities at the court, said the NBR cannot demand any income tax from his clients until the disposal of the appeals against the HC verdict.

Mohammad Sakhawat Hossain, counsel for five private universities, told this correspondent that no private educational institution needs to pay the government income tax till the disposal of the appeals.

There are 98 private universities in the country.  Of those, 84 having 4.5 lakh students are now running academic activities.

Contacted, Attorney General AM Amin Uddin said the government is not currently demanding any income tax from the private universities.

Senior counsels M Amir-Ul Islam, AF Hasan Ariff, Rokanuddin Mahmud, Fida M Kamal and Prabir Neogi argued in favour of the private universities at the virtual hearing on the leave-to-appeal petitions.

Following 44 separate writ petitions filed by nearly two dozen private universities, the HC on September 5, 2016, declared illegal the government orders that imposed 15 percent income tax on the private educational institutions and asked the NBR to refund the money collected from the institutions from 2007.

The HC also scrapped the three statutory regulatory orders for tax imposition issued by the government in 2007 and 2010 which imposed 15 percent income tax on private universities and private medical, dental and engineering colleges.

Following a government petition, the chamber judge of the SC on September 7, 2016, stayed part of the HC verdict that scrapped the government orders imposing 15 percent income tax on private institutions.

The chamber judge also stayed the HC directive asking the NBR to refund the money collected as income tax from the institutions from 2007.