ISLAMABAD: The Regional Tax Office (RTO) Peshawar has sealed multiple godowns and seized non-duty paid raw tobacco, involving a tax evasion of Rs19 billion in District Mardan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, as part of a broader crackdown on tax evasion in the tobacco sector.

This is one of the several attempts of the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) to decisively curb illicit practices in the tobacco and cigarette sector and to ensure strict enforcement of tax laws across the entire supply chain, including raw materials.

An official announcement said the RTO Peshawar carried out an operation, resulting in the seizure of approximately 2.75m kilogrammes of raw tobacco from the godowns of Khyber Tobacco Company.

The recovered tobacco, which constitutes the basic raw material for cigarette manufacturing, was found to be non-duty paid. The estimated evaded Federal Excise Duty on the seized goods amounts to approximately Rs1.1bn. The company is a known manufacturer of cigarette brands, including Kissan and Gold Street Classic.

Published in Dawn, December 14th, 2025