Billions of dollars a year in corruption by British America Tobacco.

The British American Tobacco Company is selling old-priced packs of cigarettes at new prices. After increasing the price in the budget, it has been making more profit by selling old cigarettes at a higher price for a month; At least 100 crore Bangladeshi taka 10 million dollar have been evaded by the Bangladesh government. However, the Bangladesh government imposed new tariffs on cigarettes to get additional revenue.

This time in the budget, the Bangladesh government has increased the price of Benson-Malboro or premium level cigarettes by Tk 14 per pack of 20 pieces . The high level package including Gold leaf has been increased by Tk 22, middle level by Tk 4 and low level package by Tk 2.

The Bangladesh government’s decision is to increase revenue. But the British American Tobacco-BAT, which produces the lion’s share of the country’s cigarettes, is selling the old cigarettes at the new price and giving revenue at the same rate as last year.

For example, the rate written in Benson’s packet is Tk 270. But they are selling at the new price of Rs.284. Here, 81 percent of the additional 14 taka per packet or 11 taka 34 paise is supposed to be received by the government. But the government is depriving the government of additional revenue from these cigarettes with old price tax stamps.

According to the Bangladeshi Board of Revenue, revenue of Rs 28 crore has been falsified in two and a half crore packets in a month. The government is expected to get Tk 14 and a half out of the increased Tk 22 per packet including Goldleaf. Here the revenue of 2 crore 36 lakh packets is Rs 34 crore. Similarly, 8 crores in middle class and 30 crores in low class cigarettes have been released. All together in one month, the sum of Income tax evasion is 100 crores.

Thus, by selling old cigarettes at new prices every year, the company has been maintaining both huge profits and revenue evasion. But the National Board of Revenue Bangladesh  is indifferent in this regard.The company secretary of British America Tobacco Md. Azizur Rahman FCSsaid that he did not know that his company does such a thing