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VAT on health bill still in force

Staff Correspondent
Most private hospitals and clinics are charging patients Value Added Tax, violating a High Court order, since the VAT Act 1991 is still in force.
The National Board of Revenue, which looks after realising VAT from citizens, has not given hospitals, clinics and diagnostic centres any instructions to break the stalemate arising out of the contradiction between the HC order and the VAT act. ’
NBR's Member (VAT) Mannan Patwary yesterday told The Daily Star, "We are taking steps to appeal in the court against the
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position in the port city. They claimed that they now know that their glory days are fading and they have joined hands to keep their turf in Chittagong city.
The September 24 meeting is being considered politically significant for both SQ Chowdhury and the mayor, particularly when mayoral polls to Chittagong City Corporation is around the comer. Sources said the mayor wants to be the AL-backed candidate in the polls to be held next year.
Centring the election, Mohiuddin. who faced strong opposition within his party in recent times, wants effective support from rival BNP in the next CCC poll. Sources said the three times mayor always had "negotiations" with the local BNP bigwigs ahead of the CCC elections.
In the last CCC elections, he had a deal with BNP leader Abdullah Al Noman to defeat BNP candidate Mir Nasir Uddin, sources in the AL claimed. Since this time around Noman himself is a possible BNP candidate, Mohiuddin chooses SQ Chowdhury to have a deal with and keep dominating politics in Chittagong city.
Sources said ahead of the 2005 CCC election. Mohiuddin had said that Noman was a relative of him and this time he has already claimed that SQ Chowdhury is his nephew.
Party insiders said the mayor has adopted old strategies tins time too to ensure victory in the election if he is nominated.
Talking to The Daily Star, a presidium member of AL said the party would try to resolve the issue after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina returns home from the USA.
Mohiuddin, who invited SQ Chowdhury to his home a day after Eid. is now facing the wrath of local AL leaders and lawmakers and the BNP leader too is facing his party wrath for making remarks against Tarique Rahman and Khaleda Zia's political office in Gulshan.
Divided into different factions, leaders and activists of both parties have been demanding expulsion of the two leaders from their parties.
AL leaders and lawmakers in the port city have been demanding stern action against the mayor for holding the meeting with "war criminal" SQ Chowdhury who made objectionable remarks about Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's killingon 15August. 1975.
Protesting the mayor's meeting with the controversial BNP leader, a section of AL men attacked a public meeting of Mohiuddin Friday.
For the last two days, angry AL and BNP workers set fire to their effigies in the port city.
Talking to The Daily Star, member of Chittagong City AL AJM Nasir Uddin said they could not accept the unethical activities of the mayor.
Nasir said he would be a candidate in the CCC elections since Mohiuddin is unlikely to get party nomination due to a popularity decline triggered by his "arrogant" activities.
"In fact Mohiuddin Chowdhury held the meeting with SQ Chowdhury only to mount psychological pressure on party chief Sheikh Hasina so that she ensures his candidacy," said Nasir.
He said upon arrival of the party president from the USA, they would demand expulsion of Mohiuddin from the party.