Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman on Sunday said the party’s long march towards Islamabad had begun, calling on the government to provide relief to the people.
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Hafiz Naeem was leading the JI’s train march from Karachi Cantt Railway Station as the party entered the next phase of its nationwide protest against the Petroleum Development Levy (PDL).
Hundreds of JI workers and supporters accompanied the party chief at the railway station. The party had earlier ended its protest sit-in at Press Club Chowk before moving towards Karachi Cantt to begin the march.
Speaking to the media, Hafiz Naeem said the protest would continue until the petroleum levy was withdrawn. He described the levy as an “extortion” and said the government had to provide relief to the public.
The JI has been holding protests and sit-ins in several cities against the petroleum levy and had announced September 20 as the date for its long march to Islamabad. Five rounds of negotiations between the government and JI had failed to resolve the dispute over the levy.
Hafiz Naeem warned that the protest could intensify if the government continued with the petroleum levy.
He also criticised the government’s proposed relief measures, saying that the government had offered around Rs25 billion in monthly relief while refusing to withdraw the petroleum levy.
The JI chief claimed that the government collected Rs1,567 billion through the petroleum levy during the previous year, and reiterated the party’s demand for its withdrawal. The figure is a claim made by Hafiz Naeem and has not been independently established in the statement.
According to JI’s announced plan, the Karachi train caravan is expected to travel towards Islamabad, with the party saying its broader mobilisation will bring participants from different parts of the country to the federal capital.
Hafiz Naeem said the protest movement would continue until the government’s position on the petroleum levy was addressed.
