JI says it will 'no longer' postpone Islamabad march, will resume it in mid-November

Why This Matters

Key context: <p>Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) emir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman on Tuesday said his party would hold its march to Islamabad against the petroleum levy in mid-November.</p> <p>He made the announcement during a press conference in Islamabad, which came shortly after he met with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to discuss his demand to abolish the petroleum levy.</p> <p>“We want to make it clear that we will not postpone our Islamabad march any longer. It will now take place in mid-November, and it certainly will take place,” the JI chief said.</p> <p>He added, “Let them announce this package, provide this relief, and devise a mechanism to abolish this extortionate levy before that, [but] if they do not do so, we might have to sit on the road to talk.</p> <p>“We are prepared for anything,” Rehman declared.</p> <p>Asked about the outcome of his meeting with PM Shehbaz — offered by the latter when urging the party to <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2031832">postpone</a> its Islamabad march — the JI emir refrained from terming it “inconclusive”.</p> <p>He noted that two sides had consensus on expanding the scope of relief, but there were disagreements over the “modalities” and “procedure”.</p> <p>“We say eliminate the levy; they say we can move towards it phase by phase,” Rehman elaborated.</p> <p>At around 4pm, a post on JI’s account said Rehman had reached PM House, accompanied by a delegation including the party’s Deputy Emir Liaquat Baloch, Deputy Secretary General Syed Farasat Shah, and JI Islamabad Emir Nasrullah Randhawa.</p> <figure class='media w-full w-full media-- media--embed media--uneven media--tweet' data-original-src='https://x.com/JIPOfficial/status/2115034478460731737'> <div class='media__item media__item--twitter '><span> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"> <a href="https://twitter.com/JIPOfficial/status/2115034478460731737"></a> </blockquote> </span></div> </figure> <p>The JI has been demanding for over two months that the Centre abolish petroleum levies, as fuel <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2038809"><u>prices</u></a> have <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/1987901"><u>skyrocketed</u></a> due to <a href="https://www.dawn.com/live/iran-israel-war">conflicts</a> in the Middle East since March.</p> <p>The Centre and JI had agreed to <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2027209">form committees</a> in early September — when the latter had planned a <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2025554">nationwide strike</a> — to recommend measures to reduce the levy.</p> <p>Rehman on Monday warned that the party would <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2039943/ji-threatens-march-to-islamabad-in-mid-november-if-petroleum-levy-not-abolished">march</a> to Islamabad in mid-November if the premier did not abolish the petroleum levy.</p> <p>On Aug 16, the JI <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2021518/ji-announces-aug-16-sit-ins-in-provincial-capitals-to-protest-petroleum-levy"><u>announced</u></a> sit-ins in all the provincial capitals of Pakistan against the petroleum levy and had called for a <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2025554">nationwide strike</a> on Sept 3.</p> <p>On Sept 20, the party launched a <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2031346">protest march</a> towards Islamabad, warning that if the government failed to abolish the petroleum levy, the protest could turn into one to oust the government.</p> <p>On Sept 22, the JI emir said his party, whose convoy had reached Multan, was <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2031832"><u>postponing</u></a> its long march at the request of PM Shehbaz, who had assured the other side of a meeting to discuss the matters.</p> <p>However, in a <a href="https://www.dawn.com/news/2038779"><u>press release</u></a> issued last week, the party alleged that the government had made no further contact regarding the planned meeting.</p> This development from dawn.com highlights ongoing changes in the sector.