ISLAMABAD: Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman on Friday announced that the party’s long march will reach Islamabad on September 23 and 24, with a train march scheduled to leave Karachi on September 20.
Addressing a press conference in the federal capital, Rehman said participants would begin arriving in Islamabad from all four directions from September 20.
He clarified that the JI would not block roads during the protest, saying the party was coming to Islamabad to seek relief for the people rather than create confrontation.
“We are coming to get relief, not to lay hands on anyone,” he said, adding that the government had been asked to grant permission for the protest.
Rehman said the party’s primary demand was the abolition of the petroleum levy, arguing that major political parties were not adequately addressing the problems faced by ordinary Pakistanis.
He said the government had agreed to several demands during negotiations with the JI but had failed to implement the commitments.
The JI chief also criticised the government’s recently announced fuel relief package, saying it had been introduced without adequate planning and was insufficient to address the broader impact of high fuel prices.
Under the government’s special relief scheme, motorcyclists, rickshaw and chingchi drivers and owners of other two- and three-wheeled vehicles are eligible for Rs100 per litre relief on up to 20 litres of petrol per month.
Owners and users of vehicles with engine capacity of up to 800cc are eligible for the same Rs100 per litre relief on up to 30 litres per month.
Rehman said reducing the petroleum levy would have provided relief to a wider section of the population. He also criticised the absence of a similar relief measure for diesel, arguing that diesel was essential for economic activity.
“The government’s approach is to give relief to the people as charity, not their right,” he said.
The JI chief said the party remained in contact with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and had supported its protests, while PTI supporters had also backed the JI’s planned march.
“If the government has any mechanism to provide relief, let us talk today,” he said.
Addressing candidates appearing for the Medical and Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT), Rehman said the JI wanted the examination to be held and assured students that the party’s protest would not obstruct the test.
The announcement comes days after the JI rejected the government’s special fuel relief scheme, maintaining that the package could not serve as a substitute for abolishing the petroleum levy.
