LAHORE: Federal Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal has contacted Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Pakistan Vice Emir Liaqat Baloch and conveyed Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s message regarding talks on the petroleum levy.
According to Baloch, the prime minister had asked Ahsan Iqbal, who heads the government committee on the petroleum levy issue, to coordinate with the JI committee and finalise a mutually agreed schedule for a meeting between him and JI Emir Hafiz Naeem-ur-Rehman. He said the government and the JI committees would hold consultations soon to finalise the schedule and discuss the petroleum levy issue.
Baloch said the proposed meeting between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Hafiz Naeem-ur-Rehman would focus on the abolition of the petroleum levy. The JI emir would also discuss matters relating to agreements with independent power producers (IPPs) and reduction in electricity prices with the prime minister.
He made it clear that the JI’s demand was unambiguous, saying the party had repeatedly maintained that the petroleum levy was an unjust tax and should be abolished completely. Baloch said the JI had been campaigning against the petroleum levy for the past two months. During the first phase, roads were blocked at 510 locations, while sit-ins continued at more than 40 locations for five weeks.
In the third phase, the JI launched a “Super Long March” from Karachi towards Islamabad. Baloch said the march had been paused at the prime minister’s request. He expressed hope that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif would honour the assurances given to Hafiz Naeem-ur-Rehman and announce a major relief package for the people soon.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
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