ISLAMABAD: Former finance minister and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Shaukat Tarin said on Sunday that the increase in prices of petroleum products would fuel inflation in the country to 35 percent and make the life of the poor very hard.

While talking to a private news channel after Finance Minister Ishaq Dar announced increase in petroleum prices, Tarin said that the government would further increase the petroleum prices. In addition to the petroleum prices, gas prices and additional taxes would be imposed to fulfil the conditionalities of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

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He said that there was 14 to 15 percent devaluation of rupee against dollar in last few days and increase in petroleum prices was the result of devaluation. He said that the PDM government came to power with the agenda to amend the NAB laws and reverse electronic voting machine (EVM).

Tarin claimed the PDM government came into power only to change the NAB rules.

He added that present government does care about the difficulties of the people. After the increase in the prices of petroleum products, now the prices of food and beverages will increase and people will suffer more due to inflation.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023