Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Ameer Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman has announced another long march in November this year. He stated that if the petroleum levy is not abolished, decisions will be made on the streets.
“We will hold a long march to Islamabad in mid-November,” he announced.
He said the party would not postpone the march this time. However, talks with the government would continue during this period.
Speaking at a news conference, Hafiz Naeem said Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif had asked the party to give the government another seven to 10 days.
He said people were struggling with rising prices and the party had held several long sit-ins to demand relief. He added that JI had presented its demands to the prime minister during a meeting.
What are Jamaat-e-Islami’s demands?
Hafiz Naeem said the government must end the petroleum levy. He described the levy as an unfair burden on the public and said petrol prices should be reduced.
He said the government had offered to increase subsidies to provide relief to people. However, the government wanted to end the petroleum levy in stages.
The JI chief said the government had asked the party for help, citing difficulties caused by the current situation in the global market.
He acknowledged the challenges in the international market but said the public still needed relief from high prices.
Will talks with the government continue?
Hafiz Naeem said negotiations with the government would continue, but preparations for the long march would also go ahead.
He said the government had several options to provide relief to the public. He also questioned whether the government would have offered any relief if Jamaat-e-Islami had not staged protests.
The party has maintained that its long march will take place in mid-November unless its demands are addressed.
