The Federal Board of Revenue has suspended two senior Inland Revenue Service officers over the unauthorised call for a nationwide pen-down strike that was withdrawn within hours of being announced.
FBR issued two separate notifications on Monday suspending Commissioner Naib Ali Pathan, a BS-20 officer posted at the Regional Tax Office Zone-I in Hyderabad, and Additional Commissioner Ali Salah Hayat, a BS-19 officer at the Regional Tax Office in Sargodha. Two other BS-20 officers have been repatriated to FBR headquarters for further investigation. The FBR’s press release did not name the officers; their names appear in the notifications.
The action follows the Inland Revenue Service Officers Association’s announcement on Saturday of a countrywide pen-down strike on 19 October against proposed restructuring of the tax machinery. The association withdrew the call overnight, conceding it had been issued prematurely and had not been finalised for release, and directed officers to report for duty as normal on Monday.
FBR said the suspensions rest on prima facie violations of Rules 23 and 26 of the Civil Servants (Conduct) Rules 2026, framed under the Civil Servants Act 1973, with misconduct proceedings under Rule 34 to be pursued under the Civil Servants (Efficiency and Discipline) Rules 2020.
The move came a day after Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif voiced displeasure over the strike call during a high-level briefing on FBR reforms, warning there would be no tolerance for resistance to the overhaul and that officers unwilling to comply could be asked to leave. The prime minister noted officers had already received a fourfold increase in salaries, along with official vehicles and accommodation.
The withdrawal of the strike call followed a meeting between the association’s representatives and FBR’s Member Administration and Member Operations.
ProPakistani, citing its own sources, reported that the suspensions will run for 120 days with immediate effect and that both officers must report daily to the office of the FBR Member Administration and Human Resources, with attendance marked at 9am, noon and 4pm. That detail did not appear in the FBR’s official press release.
The crackdown follows Monday’s review meeting, where the prime minister ordered the pace of FBR reforms to be accelerated. Read more: PM Orders Faster FBR Reforms After High-Level Review
