Three telcos challenge NBR order to freeze accounts

Three mobile operators went to court yesterday challenging an order by the National Board of Revenue to freeze the operators' bank accounts.
The NBR order was meant to realise from the operators a combined amount of Tk 398.03 crore in tax outstanding for six years.
Lawyers for Banglalink, Robi and Citycell separately sought High Court's nod to hear their pleas. But the court declined to hear the petitions immediately, saying the matter was not urgent, two lawyers said.
"The court said it cannot entertain our petition without going through the certified copy of the verdict of the Appellate Division on the SIM tax issue," said Barrister Tanjib-ul Alam, who moved for Robi.
"We also demanded that no action should be taken prior to the release of the Appellate Division's full verdict," he said, adding that the petition was filed challenging the validity of the NBR order to freeze Robi's bank accounts.
Justice Salma Masud Chowdhury and Justice Quazi Reza-Ul Hoque advised the mobile phone operators to place their petitions after the vacation. "We will again pray to court," said Advocate Md Asaduzzaman, who moves for Banglalink and Citycell.
Last week, the NBR directed banks to freeze accounts of Banglalink, Robi and Citycell to force the mobile operators to pay outstanding taxes against sales of SIM cards for the period between August 2006 and March 2007.
The tax collector's move asking for the outstanding taxes on SIM card sales came a month after the Appellate Division reversed a High Court verdict against the imposition of SIM tax by the government earlier.
In August 2006, the HC declared SIM tax illegal. In March 2007, the NBR went to the Appellate Division challenging the HC's order on SIM tax.
In the order, the NBR asked banks to deduct the amount from the accounts of the three mobile operators and transfer the money to the state coffers if the operators do not pay the dues in 15 days.
The NBR had earlier asked four mobile operators, including Grameenphone, to pay a combined amount of Tk 746 crore in tax. Grameenphone paid
Tk 348 crore to the tax -administrator.
Robi was supposed to pay Tk 181.79 crore, Banglalink Tk 168.64 crore and Citycell Tk 47.6 crore as supplementary duty and VAT on SIM sales for the period between August 2006 and March 2007.