NBR clarification over VAT on tuition fees at private universities is eyewash, says BNP

The BNP sees a deception in the assurance the National Board of Revenue (NBR) gave to students who were demonstrating against VAT on tuition fees at the private universities.

The party says VAT should not be collected from either the universities or the students.

 

Traffic in capital city Dhaka came to a halt as the students took to the streets in several areas protesting against the VAT on Thursday.

 

Amid the protest, the NBR in a statement said the private university authorities, not the students, would have to pay the VAT, as it is included in the existing tuition fees.

 

The BNP at a press conference at its Naya Paltan headquarters in the evening cleared its stance over the issue, throwing its support behind the protesters.

 

“NBR’s statement is a trick. It aims at easing the students’ protest by confusing them,” spokesperson Asaduzzaman Ripon said.

 

“To pay the VAT, the institutions will hike tuition, semesters, laboratory and other fees,” he said.

 

“We clearly demand that neither the universities nor the students be made to pay the VAT. This can’t be imposed on them. 

 

“VAT can’t be imposed on universities. They are not commercial institutions,” he added.