DHAKA: As he was staying abroad, Nobel Laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus Sunday sought time to meet the tax commissioner concerned of National Board of Revenue over his unpaid taxes of more than Tk 13-crore.

On his behalf, tax lawyer Mahbubur Rahman sought time to appear before it till April 13.

On March 22, NBR sent a letter asking Yunus to meet the commissioner of the Taxes Zone-6 (Dhaka) at 11:00am Sunday (March 29) to resolve the matter through discussions.

Sources said Dr Yunus was summoned not for income tax but for gift tax, which had not been paid.

Dr Yunus had Tk 13,85,25,000 (nearly 140 million) in unpaid taxes on gifts received from home and abroad as awards.

If a person gives someone a gift with the money the recipient has to pay tax on that income.

Dr. Yunus and the Grameen Bank, which was founded by him, shared the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006.

BDST: 1801 HRS, MAR 29, 2015