Finance ministry rejects reports of Dar taking over budget-making process

ISLAMABAD: The Ministry of Finance on Thursday dismissed media reports suggesting that Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar had taken control of the federal budget-making process, terming the claims “misleading” and “factually incorrect”.

The clarification came after a report published by The Express Tribune claimed that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had handed over responsibility for preparing the upcoming budget to Dar following dissatisfaction with the initial work.

According to the report, the premier had constituted a Dar-led committee to review tax policy proposals prepared by the Tax Policy Office under the Finance Division, effectively placing final decisions on new taxation measures and relief proposals under Dar’s supervision.

The report also suggested that another committee headed by Ahad Khan Cheema had been tasked with finalising enforcement measures, creating an impression that the Finance Ministry had been sidelined from the budget process.

Rejecting the interpretation, the Finance Ministry said the committee was merely formed to review and analyse certain tax policy proposals in consultation with relevant stakeholders, describing such inter-ministerial coordination as a routine governance practice.

The ministry stressed that the preparation of the federal budget — including macroeconomic planning, fiscal strategy, expenditure management and engagement with the International Monetary Fund — continued to remain under the authority of the Finance Division led by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb.

It further noted that Aurangzeb himself was a member of the committee headed by Dar and continued to lead Pakistan’s negotiations with international financial institutions on all budgetary and economic matters.

The statement accused the report of creating a false impression of divisions within the government, insisting that the federal budget remained a “collective constitutional and cabinet-driven exercise” under the leadership of the prime minister.

Later in the day, Dar chaired the first meeting of the newly formed committee to review tax proposals for the upcoming budget.

According to a statement issued by the Deputy Prime Minister’s Office, the committee discussed measures aimed at broadening the tax base, improving revenue collection and promoting economic growth while ensuring that compliant taxpayers were not subjected to an additional burden.