Srinagar (KNO) : Terming the issuance of notices by the Commercial Tax and other agencies to Kashmiri traders over clearance of previous dues a “cruel joke,” the Kashmir Traders and Manufacturers Federation (KTMF) President Mr Haji Muhammad Yasin Khan has said that in the wake of official diktat the government wants to fleece the flood affected traders whose livelihood was marooned in the 2014 deluge.
In a statement, Khan who also heads the Kashmir Economic Alliance (KEA), said the government wants to impose tax on the commodities that were destroyed in the 2014 deluge and for which the traders even don’t have proper records. “Commodities worth crores were destroyed in the deluge and the then administration apprehending outbreak of epidemic forced the traders to immediately throw away their destroyed consignments at an earliest. And now all of the sudden we’re being harassed,” Khan said. He said the subsequent regimes were apprised about the logical and humanitarian problem faced by the traders community in this regard.
“That time we were assured of respite through waivers but now things are suddenly turning against us for no fault of ours,” Khan said. Khan appealed Governor NN Vohra to personally look into the matter. Meanwhile the KTMF has appealed the affected traders to contact the head office of the KTMF near Budshah Chowk Srinagar and get their details registered.