Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman has announced a march on Islamabad for September 20 against the Petroleum Development Levy (PDL), warning that the party could launch a campaign to seek the removal of the government if its demands are not addressed.
Speaking at a rally in Gujranwala on Friday, Rehman said JI supporters would travel to the federal capital in caravans from across the country. He warned that the party’s ongoing protest movement would enter a “decisive phase” if the government failed to withdraw the petroleum levy.
“If the petroleum levy is still in place when the long march begins, the people will decide the matter on the streets of Islamabad,” Rehman said.
The federal government currently collects Rs114 per litre in taxes and duties on petrol and Rs100 per litre on diesel.
JI expands petroleum levy protests
The announcement came as JI sit-ins against the levy entered their 27th day in Lahore, Peshawar, Karachi and several other locations.
Rehman said the protests would be expanded further and announced that he would address a women’s gathering in Islamabad on Saturday.
Earlier, he chaired a meeting of JI leaders from across the country at Mansoorah in Lahore to discuss the next phase of the protest campaign.
The JI chief also said the party had emerged as a political force for people frustrated with successive governments and described it as a source of hope for citizens facing economic and social challenges.
The JI has previously announced plans to hold sit-ins in all provincial capitals against the petroleum levy and later called a nationwide strike for September 3.
Rehman criticises political and economic policies
During his address, Rehman criticised what he described as the dominance of bureaucracy, feudal landlords and powerful families over the country’s political and economic system.
He claimed ordinary citizens were bearing the burden of these policies, while children were being pushed into labour and deprived of educational opportunities.
Rehman also criticised the Punjab government over violence and exploitation against women. He claimed around 6,500 cases had been registered in the province but said convictions had been secured in only a small number of cases.
Pakistan Belongs to Its People, Not to Generals or Politicians: Jamaat-e-Islami Chief Hafiz Naeem
He challenged Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz to provide the Federal Board of Revenue with a complete account of her income and expenditure following her recent comments that she had personally paid for a London trip on a government aircraft.
The JI chief also accused the Sharif and Zardari families of contributing to the exploitation of poorer sections of society and claimed that more than 40% of Punjab’s population was living in poverty.
JI questions petroleum levy and government spending
Rehman claimed the government had collected Rs1,567 billion from citizens through the petroleum levy and questioned the justification for what he termed a “jagga tax”.
He argued that millions of Pakistanis still lacked adequate access to healthcare and education and said the government should focus on reducing its own expenditures rather than imposing additional financial burdens on citizens.
He also criticised successive governments since the 1990s over policies concerning independent power producers and called for a review of government spending.
Rehman questioned continued federal budget allocations for departments and functions after the 18th Amendment transferred several responsibilities to the provinces.
He further called for an end to interest-based financial practices, referring to a ruling by the Federal Shariat Court. He argued that reducing interest payments could save the national exchequer thousands of billions of rupees.
The JI leader said the party had raised these issues during talks with the government but had not received satisfactory responses.
“If the rulers cannot answer the people’s questions, the people will now demand those answers themselves,” he said.
The JI announced on August 16 that it would hold sit-ins in all provincial capitals against the petroleum levy. The party subsequently called a nationwide strike for September 3 and has now announced the September 20 Islamabad march as the next major phase of its protest campaign.
