United News of Bangladesh

Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya, who led the committee that prepared the White Paper on the state of Bangladesh's economy, on Saturday strongly criticised the interim government for increasing value-added tax (VAT) ‘inconsiderately’. “We are astonished to see how inconsiderately the value-added tax was increased,” he said while delivering his introductory speech at a symposium titled ‘White Paper and Thereafter: Economic Management, Reforms, and National Budget’ at the Bangabandhu International Conference Centre (BICC). The distinguished fellow at the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) stated that in any country, if the government aims to collect taxes effectively, it should gradually focus on direct taxes. VAT on hotels, restaurants to be revised to previous level: NBR “We did not see any plan to collect direct taxes,” he noted. Debapriya, who is also the convener of the Citizen's Platform for SDGs, pointed out that no strategy has been proposed for individuals with Tax Identification Numbers (TINs) who fail to pay taxes. LPG price slightly hiked after VAT structure change “That means you go first towards the indirect tax keeping aside the direct tax. This has made us concerned,” he added.    

The Bangladesh Mobile Phone Consumers Association organised a human chain protest in the capital on Sunday strongly opposing the newly imposed Value Added Tax (VAT) and supplementary duty on mobile and internet services. Arranged in front of the Jatiya Press Club, the participants at the protest warned the government of further action, including laying siege to the National Board of Revenue (NBR) office, if the decision is not withdrawn within a week. Speaking at the demonstration, Aminul Hakim, President of the Bangladesh Internet Governance Forum and Internet Infrastructure Gateway (IIG), expressed concern over the impact on broadband services. "Broadband internet, entirely driven by local entrepreneurs, is now under threat. With the imposition of a 10% supplementary duty and VAT, both consumers and the industry will suffer,” he said, adding that a failure to reverse the decision would result in a larger protest. Imdadul Haque, President of the Internet Service Providers Association of Bangladesh (ISPAB), highlighted the potential harm to small entrepreneurs and consumers alike. “This tax increase will discourage internet use and widen the digital divide,” he warned. Read: Nagorik Committee demands resumption of sales in TCB trucks, VAT rollback Former director of the Bangladesh Competition Commission, Khalid Abu Naser, criticised the decision, saying that it would not only inconvenience citizens but also create unnecessary challenges for the government. “Hasty decisions like this must be reversed promptly,” he said. Fahim Mashroor, a technologist and former president of the Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services (BASIS), condemned the lack of stakeholder consultation before the tax hike. “This unilateral decision reflects an authoritarian approach. Increased taxes will hurt the telecom and internet sectors, stifle new entrepreneurship, and make these services unaffordable for ordinary citizens,” he said. Presiding over the protest, Mohiuddin Ahmed accused corrupt revenue officials of influencing the decision for their own benefit. “We believed our days of street protests were over, but such inconsiderate actions forced us back onto the streets. If the government does not act within a week, we will organise a sit-in in front of the NBR office,” he alleged. Read more: Mobile internet shut down again Other speakers included technologist Fida Haque, freelancer representative Anis, and representatives from the Recharge Business Association and Pathao. The protest reflected growing discontent among stakeholders across sectors, urging the government to reconsider the decision in the interest of consumers and the country's digital economy.