Calls for action grow louder over POL prices

LAHORE:

Political parties and the Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) joined forces on Saturday to express their strong opposition to the sharp increase in prices of petroleum products, unanimously urging the interim government to take immediate action to ease the financial burden on the already struggling public.

Vehemently condemning the steep hikes in petrol and diesel prices, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf deemed the soaring costs as harsh and inhumane. The party has called upon the caretaker administration to desist from the merciless practice of transferring the cost of “failed economic policies” onto the shoulders of the public.

“After sapping the purchasing power of citizens,” a party spokesperson said that the hike “appears to be a calculated move,” possibly aimed at stoking civil unrest.

“The caretaker government is seen as a continuation of the criminal governance of the PDM in all aspects,” he added. The spokesperson appealed to the caretaker prime minister to choose a more virtuous path rather than perpetuating the legacy of wrongdoers.

The party voiced concern that the hike would amplify the destructive wave of inflation, demanding an immediate rollback of the increase in petroleum product prices and an end to the government's extortionate policies.

Read also: Petrol, diesel witness massive price hikes

Rejecting the petrol and diesel price hikes, Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) leader Sirajul Haq expressed his disdain for the government's decision to make life even more challenging for the public at the behest of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

He underscored that Jamaat-e-Islami had already issued a call for a protest movement against rising electricity and petroleum prices. Public sit-ins are planned outside the governor houses in all four provinces.

Siraj-ul-Haq appealed to the public not to remain silent, as passivity in this situation equates to peril. Instead, he urged citizens to join the Jamaat-e-Islami movement, asserting that the party would compel the government to rescind the price hikes with the support of the public.

Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party (IPP) Central Information Secretary Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan likened the surge in petrol and diesel prices to a “cruel act” akin to dragging the poor through hardship. She lamented that a 'petroleum bomb' had been detonated upon the people during the night, declaring that such a drastic increase in petroleum product prices was unacceptable under any circumstances.

She urged the caretaker government to strive for public relief despite the challenges, emphasising that the hearts of the underprivileged could only be won through policies that were genuinely in their favour.

PBC reaction

Pakistan Bar Council (PBC) Executive Committee Chairman Hassan Raza Pasha, Vice-Chairman Haroonur Rashid and learned members of the council have taken strong exception to the “historic” hike in fuel prices which will further lead to overall “massive inflation” in the country, boosting the prices of consumer items.

The council, in a statement released on Saturday, said the interim government increased fuel prices by “honouring dictation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)” without consideration.

The PBC said the interim government failed to understand the “miseries” of the people which they were facing due to continuous massive inflation.

Demanding the withdrawal of the “privileges” of the bureaucrats and the ministers, the PBC called for the austerity measures to decrease the burden on the government’s shoulders. The council said that the “elite class should also sacrifice.”

'Taking away dignified life'

Pakistan's Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) chief Hafiz Saad Rizvi has vehemently opposed the recent increase in petroleum prices, accusing the government of burdening the common citizens and stripping them of their right to a dignified life.

In a fiery statement on Saturday, Rizvi said: "The interim government and the PDM government are indistinguishable".

The TLP chief blamed that the caretaker prime minister was illegitimately wielding his position of power. He further emphasised that imposing the entire economic burden on the shoulders of the public was a form of tyranny and called for an immediate rollback of the petroleum price hike.

LHC moved

A civil miscellaneous application was filed in the Lahore High Court (LHC) on Saturday, seeking direction to set aside the recently issued notification through which the prices of petroleum products were increased.

Petitioner Judicial Activism Panel (JAP), a non-governmental organization (NGO), filed this application through Advocate Azhar Siddique and other lawyers, contending the recent fixation of prices of petroleum products is without any legal justification. The petitioner demanded the notification of the price hike to be set aside.