Territorial limits
Whenever a Pakistani media outlet publishes the map of Pakistan, it makes an effort to ensure that Azad Jammu and Kashmir as well as Gilgit-Baltistan are included in the country’s territory. The two regions are also an integral part of Pakistan’s commercial and economic markets: goods, services and people travel from Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan to Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan – and vice versa – without any border controls and taxation. Sost, one of Pakistan’s busiest trading posts with China is located in Gilgit-Baltistan and the Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Project, one of the largest electricity production projects in the country is being built on the confluence of two rivers in Azad Jammu and Kashmir.
Pakistan’s constitution, however, does not so much as mention Azad Jammu and Kashmir or Gilgit-Baltistan. And yet, in a twist of irony, residents of the two regions are subjected to all taxes — including income tax, which all Pakistani citizens have to pay.
Here, the Herald explains some such inconsistencies. Read complete at HERALD
