JI demands withdrawal of hike in fuel prices

Provincial ameer says interim govt has further burdened the already depressed people

QUETTA: Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Balochistan Ameer Maulana Abdul Hashmi has criticised the latest move of the interim government of raising the petroleum prices, demanding immediate withdrawal of fuel-price hike.

The JI ameer made this demand while addressing a gathering on Sunday.



Hashmi asked the Supreme Court to expose the elements behind such a move and ensure substantial decrease in fuel prices in order to provide relief to the people, who are already overburdened by the rising inflation.

He said, “The interim government has put another additional burden on the shoulders of the already depressed people. This move is tantamount to burying them alive.”

He said, “In its minimum tenure, the interim government has increased prices of fuel twice.”



He said that such policies would further increase the deprivation of the people besides further intensifying their trust deficit.

“The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority must act responsibly and take back its price-hike decision,” said the JI ameer. “If the government cannot provide relief to the people, it must not increase their difficulties through such kinds of policies.”

He said that due to the ineffective economic policies, the ratio of unemployment increased and people “are facing grave difficulties in making ends meet”.

He blamed wrong policies, including promotion of incompetent people on key posts, as the main cause of the crisis. “Absence of merit in selection and favoritism have plunged the country into quagmire of several crises,” he added.