KATHMANDU: Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal on Sunday said the government was committed to collecting the capital gains tax from the private telecommunication service provider, Ncell.

Speaking at a meeting of the Public Accounts Committee under the Parliament today, the Prime Minister said the government had already directed the concerned authorities to collect the due tax at the earliest.

Likewise, the government had also begun an investigation into why the tax was not collected yet, adding, "The government's spirit is to collect the tax at the earliest. There can be no any compromise."

Hinting that the previous government was responsible for failing to collect the tax, the Prime Minister said the government would take action against the officials involved in obstruction the issue from getting settled.

Meanwhile, after hearing from the Prime Minister, the Committee directed the government to collect the tax at the earliest.

The Committee also told the Ministry of Finance to inform the panel after gaining the tax.

One year on after the deal between two international telecom giants, the government is yet to resolve the taxation issue related to the sale of the private telecom company by TeliaSonera to Malaysian telecom operator Axiata.

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The tax issue has made the headlines time and again since over a year and parliamentary committees like PAC and Development Committee have also held discussions on the matter numerous times and instructed the Ministry of Finance (MoF) and related agencies to provide clarity.

Despite all this, the MoF continues to remain mum about who is liable to pay the CGT — TeliaSonera, Axiata or Ncell — for the record deal of Rs 143 billion between TeliaSonera and Axiata.

The Swedish company TeliaSonera had divested its share at Ncell to Malaysian telecommunication company Axiata in April last year.