JI Announces Islamabad March Over Petroleum Levy
Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Emir Abdul Wasey has announced that party workers and supporters will travel towards Islamabad on September 23 as part of the party’s ongoing campaign against the petroleum levy.
Speaking at a sit-in in Charsadda, Wasey said the party had decided to continue its protest after several rounds of talks with the government failed to resolve the issue. According to him, JI will maintain its campaign until the government withdraws the petroleum levy.
JI chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman had already launched a march towards Islamabad from Karachi, with party supporters travelling through different routes. The party has also organised caravans from several parts of the country.
Wasey said JI workers from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and other regions would join the planned march. He maintained that the campaign was focused on issues related to the petroleum levy and the cost of living rather than election activity.
JI Calls for Withdrawal of Petroleum Levy
The JI leadership has repeatedly called for the removal of the petroleum levy, arguing that fuel-related charges are increasing financial pressure on consumers.
Wasey also called for a review of government expenditure, saying the authorities should reduce spending instead of imposing additional financial burdens on citizens.
The party and government have held several rounds of discussions over the petroleum levy, but JI leaders have said that the talks have not produced an agreement on their main demand.
Workers From KP to Join March
JI Khyber Pakhtunkhwa North chief Inayatullah Khan said party workers from Malakand division would gather at the Chakdara toll plaza on September 23 before travelling towards Islamabad.
He said the planned demonstration would remain peaceful and that party workers had been instructed not to target state institutions.
The JI has been holding protests and sit-ins in different parts of Pakistan over the petroleum levy. Its leadership says the campaign will continue until the government addresses the party’s demands.
The latest announcement comes as JI’s wider march towards Islamabad continues, following the party’s departure from Karachi and subsequent travel through Sindh and Punjab.
