The merchants of Gilgit-Baltistan decided to put pressure with their sit-in at the SOST dry port, rejecting the government’s conditional tax concessions. The announcement occurred after the negotiations in Islamabad between the federal government, the GB authorities and local trade representatives.
The demonstrators have kept the port closed since July in opposition to new tax measures and the suspension of the customs authorization. On Wednesday, officials agreed to exempt certain imports from federal taxes, provided that they are intended for local use and compared to specific conditions. The annual value of these exemptions was capped at 4 billion rupees.
However, the chief of commerce Javed Hussain said Thursday that the arrangement was below their requests. “After the agreement and its announcement in Islamabad, we were suggested to end the demonstration. But we do not agree with that [suggestion] And decided to continue the sit-in and maintain the suspended trade. “”
