KARACHI: Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan Ameer Hafiz Naeemur Rehman on Wednesday warned the federal government that it would have to abolish the petroleum levy and other “unjust” taxes or face a long march to Islamabad.
“The ball is in the government’s court,” Hafiz Naeem said while addressing a women’s convention at JI’s sit-in outside the Governor House on its 25th day. He said the government’s negotiating team would meet on September 10 and, if it failed to announce clear relief for the people, JI would announce a long march towards Islamabad. He said the petroleum levy and other taxes had nothing to do with international or local oil markets, but were the result of government “incompetence, lavish spending and economic policies”.
He said JI sit-ins were continuing in 32 cities and stressed that the movement was aimed at securing public relief rather than serving any party or personal interest. “Reducing the policy rate by just one percent will save the national exchequer Rs594 billion,” he said, adding that the government had collected Rs1,567 billion in petroleum levy during the past year.
Earlier, at a press conference at Idara Noor-e-Haq, Hafiz Naeem urged opposition parties to set aside their differences and join JI’s movement for public relief. “PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar has assured cooperation, and we will also consult other opposition parties,” he said, welcoming the Sindh Assembly’s approval of a resolution against the petroleum levy moved by JI MPA Muhammad Farooq and urged the Sindh government to forward it to the federal government. He said JI would also contact the PPP and ask it to play its role in securing relief for the people.
Hafiz Naeem criticized independent power producers (IPPs), calling them a “complete mafia and cartel”. Citing recent reports, he said that despite lower energy costs, capacity payments remained high and Rs1,700 billion to Rs1,800 billion had been paid to IPPs without electricity being produced. He proposed a gradual reduction in interest rates, an increase in the cash reserve requirement for banks, higher taxes on luxury vehicles, promotion of electric vehicles and audits of gymkhanas and clubs.
He also alleged that corruption amounting to Rs1,300 billion was taking place in the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) and called for an end to tax exemptions for the sugar and flour sectors. Hafiz Naeem also said JI was not opposed to the creation of new administrative units or provinces if done through the constitutional process. However, he warned the “Form 47 government” against creating divisions among the people.
On education and healthcare, he said more than 90 percent of people were deprived of quality education and claimed that Sindh had no hospital that could be described as a proper tertiary care facility. Referring to the Mir Raza case, he said it exposed what he called the “rotten and obsolete” police system in Sindh. Hafiz Naeem announced that women’s rallies would be held in Gujranwala on September 11 and Islamabad on September 12.
Speaking at the women’s convention at the sit-in venue, JI Karachi chief Monem Zafar said the petroleum levy was affecting students, farmers, labourers and women. He said Rs130 was being collected in taxes and levies on every litre of petrol, including Rs85 as petroleum levy. He also blamed the Sindh government’s “incompetence” for problems faced by Karachi’s 35 million people.
JI Sindh Women’s Wing Nazima Rukhsana Munib said the sit-in had entered its 25th day since it began on August 16. She said women had turned out in large numbers to show that they were “no less than anyone” in raising their voice for public rights. She said the Rs130 in taxes and levies on a litre of petrol had made it increasingly difficult for families to meet basic needs and buy essential goods.
JI Karachi Women’s Wing Nazima Jawidan Fahim, former Sindh High Court Bar vice president Shazia Advocate, PIMA President Dr Shamaila, Dr Zainab Nisar Chandna, journalist Asifa Kamal and others also addressed or attended the gathering. A large number of women from across Karachi, including elderly women and children, participated in the convention, carrying banners and placards.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
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