Opposition protests against ‘mini-budget, inflation’

Shehbaz warns businesses will come to a standstill; PPP leaders say move will bring about downfall of PTI govt

ISLAMABAD:

The opposition parties on Thursday staged a protest in front of the Parliament House against the “mini-budget” and the rising inflation.

Addressing the gathering of party lawmakers and activists from Islamabad and Rawalpindi, PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif sharply criticised the economic policies of the PTI-led government, saying that inflation had taken hold all over the country.

“The lives of the people have become unbearable. The mini-budget will create a storm of inflation,” he warned.

The leader of the opposition in the National Assembly pointed out that infant milk and agricultural commodities had been taxed.

“The machines that will be imported for the treatment of cancer, TB [tuberculosis] and other diseases have also been taxed.”

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He maintained that with this mini-budget, businesses in the country would come to a standstill.

“This mini-budget will snatch away the lifeline of white-collared people. As long as Imran [Khan] Niazi is imposed on the country, the poor people will continue to be strangled.”

He noted that PTI had suffered a defeat in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. “Imran [Khan] Niazi is pushing the country towards the brink of destruction and the people must come out against this tide of inflation.”

Shehbaz stressed the need for pulling out the country out of its economic crisis.

He maintained that scandals worth billions of rupees had come to light in sugar and gas industries during the PTI’s tenure.

Speaking on the occasion, parliamentary leader of the JUI-F Maulana Asad Mahmood said the opposition rejected the mini-budget and would oppose it at every forum.

“We will not leave the people alone. We will challenge it [mini-budget]," he added.

The PPP also protested outside the Parliament House against the government's “flawed” economic policies.

Speaking to the media, PPP leaders Sherry Rehman and Nayyar Bukhari said that they would make their party chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari’s movement successful no matter how much violence their activists were subjected to by the PTI-led government.

They added that attempts were under way to bulldoze the mini-budget inside parliament and the PPP would protest inside and outside the House.

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The PPP leaders said the situation in Pakistan was in front of everyone and the country was being handed over to the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

They claimed that the mini-budget would bring about the downfall of the PTI-led government.

They added that the government would be overthrown before the PPP march reached Islamabad.

Strict security arrangements were made to deal with any untoward incident on the occasion of the protest and all the avenues of the Parliament House were sealed off.

A heavy contingent of police was deployed at the gate of the Parliament House.

Prime Minister Imran Khan was given entry to the Parliament House through the Presidency, while federal ministers had to use the second gate.