Government and Jamaat-e-Islami form joint committee on petroleum relief
The government and Jamaat-e-Islami agreed to set up a committee with three members from each side to propose ways to ease petroleum costs. The Prime Minister's Office said it will recommend widening the fuel relief scheme and a phased cut in the petroleum levy.
- Committee to have three members each from the government and Jamaat-e-Islami
- It will propose widening the petrol relief scheme and a phased levy cut
- Jamaat chief Hafiz Naeem says a march is planned for mid-November
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met a Jamaat-e-Islami delegation led by its chief, Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman. The two sides agreed to form a committee with three members each from the government and the party, according to the Prime Minister's Office.
The office said the committee will present final recommendations. It will suggest how to widen the petrol relief scheme already running and how more eligible people can benefit. It will also draw up workable proposals, within the budget, for reducing the petroleum levy in stages.
The Prime Minister said he fully understands the burden that higher petroleum prices place on people. He said the present crisis is linked to rising oil prices amid regional and international conditions, not to government policies. He said the government is making strong diplomatic efforts to resolve the regional crisis and will continue to give relief as its finances allow.
The statement said the Prime Minister briefed the delegation on relief for low-income groups, and that 12.7 million people have so far registered in the scheme.
At a joint press conference in Islamabad, Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal and the Prime Minister's adviser Rana Sanaullah spoke about the committee. Iqbal said the world faces an emergency, and that the closure of the Strait of Hormuz is affecting oil supply and has raised fuel prices in all countries. He said Jamaat-e-Islami's delegation had given its proposals and that the committee would finalise concrete ones, with widening the fuel relief scheme also under consideration. He added that nobody can say how fast oil prices will rise over the next two to three months.
Iqbal also said protests and unrest would not help economic stability. Sanaullah said the government wants to give the common man more relief and that Jamaat-e-Islami shares that aim.
Hafiz Naeem said the government asked for 7 to 10 more days on the petroleum levy. He said preparations for a march would continue, with mobilisation across the country, and that the march toward Islamabad would take place in mid-November if the levy is not removed. He said talks with the government would continue.
Why it matters
Petrol prices affect transport costs and household budgets across Pakistan. The committee's work could shape who gets fuel relief and whether the petroleum levy is cut.
