Jamaat-e-Islami Holds Nationwide Protests Against Fuel Hike, Inflation

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Jamaat-e-Islami Holds Nationwide Protests Against Fuel Hike, Inflation

LAHORE, Karachi, Peshawar, Quetta, Islamabad, May 22:
Large-scale protests were held across the country on Friday on the call of Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan Emir Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman against rising petroleum prices, inflation and anti-people economic policies of the government.
Demonstrations took place in Lahore, Karachi, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Peshawar, Quetta, Multan, Faisalabad, Hyderabad, Banu and dozens of other major and small cities, with participation from traders, workers, students and people from different walks of life. Protesters carried banners and placards demanding withdrawal of the petroleum levy, reduction in electricity prices and an end to excessive taxation.
Jamaat-e-Islami leaders addressing the rallies said the government is burdening ordinary citizens while protecting the interests of the elite. They demanded an immediate reduction in fuel and power tariffs and urged rulers to cut their own privileges and luxurious spendings instead of imposing more taxes on the public.
In Lahore, JI Vice Emir Liaqat Baloch led a protest on Mall Road along with JI Lahore Emir Ziauddin Ansari and other local party leadership, while Karachi witnessed demonstrations at 14 different locations. Similar protests were also reported from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, Punjab and interior Sindh.
Speakers at the rallies said the party would continue its movement against inflation, taxes and the oppressive petroleum levy, urging youth, traders, labourers and students to join the campaign for public rights. They argued that repeated agreements with the IMF had only increased Pakistan’s debt burden and resulted in higher taxes for citizens.
The speakers said that although the actual price of petrol stands around Rs270 per litre, consumers are being forced to pay over Rs400 because of levies and taxes. They also criticized the government’s reported plans to tax solar energy users, saying citizens had turned to solar power only after being crushed by expensive electricity bills and prolonged load-shedding.
JI leaders further said that the ruling class had failed to curb its own expenditures while continuously shifting the economic burden onto ordinary Pakistanis. They maintained that despite nearly eight decades since independence, citizens were still compelled to protest on the streets for basic rights and relief from inflation.
The protests are part of Jamaat-e-Islami’s broader anti-inflation campaign, which the party leadership says will continue in the coming weeks.
JI KP Central Emir Professor Ibrahim, JI Punjab Northern Emir Dr Tariq Salim, JI Punjab Central Emir Javed Kasuri, Deputy Secretary Generals Azhar Iqbal Hassan, Mumtaz Shetu also led protests in various cities.