VEHARI - Traders went on strike against the Excise and Taxation (E&T) Department for not inviting them to a meeting held on Tax Day in District Council Hall here on Tuesday.

The Trade Union office-bearers said that the tax mafia was not cooperating with the taxpayers. Punjab Trade Union Vice President Irshad Hussain Bhatti said that traders pay tax to boost up the economy but they are ignored badly by the department.

Markzi Anjman-e-Tajran Chairman Sarwar Chaudhry said that the excise office give relief to landlords but ignore the common men. By sealing shops and using the methods of harassment, they can’t collect tax, he said. The officers are disturbing the shopkeepers to collect taxes, he added, demanding that there should be only one department to collect the taxes.

On the occasion, Trade Union General Secretary Rao Khalil Ahmad, Chaudhry Shakeel, Abdul Rasheed, Tariq Saeed and some others were also present.