Islamabad — Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has sought an explanation from the Ministry of Finance and the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) after Pakistan missed three key targets set under its International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme, triggering a blame game between the federal government and Punjab.
The missed targets include achieving the Rs12.3 trillion tax collection goal, securing Rs50 billion from traders, and generating over Rs1.2 trillion in combined cash surpluses from the four provinces.
According to a fiscal operations summary released this week, the provinces collectively posted a surplus of Rs921 billion — Rs296 billion short of the IMF requirement. While federal authorities pointed to Punjab’s alleged overspending on development as the primary reason for the shortfall, the Punjab government hit back, accusing the Centre of withholding its due share of tax revenue under the National Finance Commission (NFC).
Punjab Information Minister Azma Bukhari told The Express Tribune that the Finance Division withheld the province’s June tranche of Rs190.8 billion. “Had this amount been released, Punjab’s surplus would have reached Rs539.2 billion, closer to the budgeted Rs630 billion target,” she said, adding that the commitment was based on an FBR collection target of Rs12.97 trillion.
The actual FBR collection for FY 2024-25 was Rs11.744 trillion — the second-highest shortfall on record at Rs1.23 trillion. Punjab maintains that its surplus pledge was contingent on the federal tax target being met.
Meanwhile, Sindh posted a Rs283 billion surplus — Rs16 billion below target — Khyber Pakhtunkhwa missed by just Rs2 billion, and Balochistan exceeded its target by Rs3 billion. Federal authorities argue that other provinces also faced reduced transfers yet managed better performance.
Bukhari insisted that Punjab had been on track until the FBR revised its projections downward in mid-June 2025, leaving little time for fiscal adjustments. “With such weak revenue forecasting and last-minute cuts, it is unreasonable to expect provinces to meet budgetary surplus targets,” she said.
The prime minister has asked for a formal response from both the Finance Ministry and the FBR on the matter.
