Minimum tax neither justified nor ethical: CPD

Budget 2023-24
Prothom Alo illustration

The Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) on Friday recommended scrapping the proposed provision of Tk 2000 minimum tax in the next budget.

The think-tank said a minimum tax Tk 2000 has been proposed in the budget for 2023-24 fiscal -- which also has offered a relief to the people from the skyrocketing inflation by raising the ceiling of tax free income to Tk 350,000.

Those who do not have taxable income will have to pay Tk 2000 to avail all government services. That is the reason why the initiative is neither ethical nor logical.        

CPD came up with the recommendation in their budget analysis on Friday morning at a hotel in the capital's Gulshan. Fahmida Khatun, executive director of CPD, presented their analysis before the media.

In the analysis, it is said at present the pressure of high inflation is a grave concern for the economy and the people. There is no effective step in the budget to overcome the challenges. Instead the finance minister, AHM Mustafa Kamal, said the inflation rate will be kept under six per cent in the next fiscal.   

The government set the target of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth at 7.5 per cent in the proposed budget.

According to the CPD, the majority of the projections in the budget are not realistic. So these targets will not be met at the end.