The finance minister’s recent assertion that a decisive crackdown on tax evaders is imminent signals a long-overdue acknowledgement of one of Pakistan’s most persistent economic distortions. According to the report, Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb has underscored the government’s intent to widen the tax net, pursue habitual evaders, and enforce compliance more rigorously, particularly among those with the capacity to pay but a history of avoiding their obligations.

The announcement deserves cautious appreciation. For decades, Pakistan’s fiscal fragility has been aggravated not merely by low growth, but by an inequitable tax culture in which the burden is disproportionately borne by the salaried and........

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