JI strike over petroleum levy shuts hundreds of markets in Karachi

Party's Karachi chief says lawyers, traders support strike as most major markets and commercial centres remain closed

RAWALPINDI/ PESHAWAR/ LAHORE/ KARACHI:

A strike called by Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) against the petroleum levy shut hundreds of markets and petrol pumps across Karachi on Thursday, while private schools and lawyers also supported the shutdown, JI Karachi Amir Monem Zafar Khan said.

Speaking at Regal Chowk in Saddar, Zafar said the traders’ strike in Karachi and across Pakistan had been “very successful”.

“Today, hundreds of markets and bazaars across Karachi are closed,” he said, adding that more than 300 small and large markets and petrol pumps had shut in response to the strike. He said the lawyers’ community had also supported the strike and private schools were closed.

Criticising the petroleum levy, Zafar said, “Rs130 per litre as a levy tax is oppression. The levy in the name of tax is not acceptable.”

He said inflation was rising while business centres were facing 12 to 18 hours of power outages.

“Unjust load-shedding should end,” Zafar said, adding that rulers were provided free electricity, gas and petrol while levies were being imposed on the public.

He also called on the police and administration to stop what he described as improper actions and demanded the release of JI workers arrested in Lyari and Korangi.

Zafar said some disruptive elements had set tyres on fire but maintained that the strike across Pakistan remained peaceful. He said the sit-in was continuing and described the strike as “very successful”.

He added that the option of a long march towards Rawalpindi and Islamabad remained open, while the JI emir would announce the party’s future course of action.

Markets remain closed

In Karachi, most major markets and commercial centres observed a shutter-down strike.

Jodia Bazar observed a partial strike, while all mobile phone markets and electronics shops in Saddar were closed. Markets along MA Jinnah Road, Light House and Bolton Market were also shut.

Chemical Market, Timber Market and Steel Market remained closed, while partial strikes were reported in Orangi Town, Liaquatabad, Federal B Area, Nazimabad and Gulshan-e-Iqbal.

Gulbahar Sanitary Market was completely closed, while markets in Pak Colony and Qayyumabad, as well as marble and furniture markets, were also shut.

A partial strike was observed in Bohri Bazaar, Saddar and around Empress Market, while markets on Zaibunnisa Street and in Zainab Market were closed.

Around 10 to 15 per cent of petrol pumps in the city that had closed in the morning later reopened. Private and commercial traffic remained lower than normal.

In Islamabad, the capital’s business and commercial centres were partially closed following an appeal by JI chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman. Most shops in Super Market, Aabpara, G-8 and G-9, among other areas, remained closed as traders supported JI’s campaign against the petroleum levy.

In Rawalpindi, commercial activity continued in the city and cantonment areas, although some shops were reported closed in certain areas. The All Pakistan Traders Association had also announced its support for the strike.

In Lahore, business centres including Queens Road, Abid Market, Hall Road, Mall Road, Nisbat Road Market, Ferozepur Road and Brandreth Road were closed following the strike call.

JI also held a motorcycle rally from its sit-in site at Charing Cross. The rally passed through Railway Station, Brandreth Road, McLeod Road and Hall Road before returning to Charing Cross.

In Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), a strike against the petroleum levy, inflation, unemployment and unrest was also underway.

JI staged a protest on Ashraf Road in Peshawar against increases in petroleum product prices, with local traders also taking part. Protesters chanted slogans against the government and rejected the levy on petrol and diesel.

However, implementation of the strike in Peshawar was partial, with shops open in most markets, including Qissa Khwani Bazaar, Saddar and University Road.

Lawyers across K-P also boycotted courts following a call by the provincial bar council. Lawyers did not appear before courts, including the Peshawar High Court, saying food and petroleum product prices were continuously increasing.