Stories
Jamaat-e-Islami's 'Super Long March' Begins After Talks Fail, Islamabad Braces for Protests
- •Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) initiated its 'Super Long March' from Karachi, Peshawar, Quetta, and Lahore towards Islamabad after talks with the Pakistan government failed.
- •The JI is demanding an end to the petroleum levy and aims for petrol prices to drop to Rs 225 per liter.
- •The long march, led by JI Chief Hafiz Naeem, will converge into a sit-in in Islamabad on September 23.
- •Islamabad's Red Zone has been sealed with heavy security deployed as the city anticipates three major long marches from JI, PTI, and Kisaan Ittehad.
- •JI's demands include significant cuts in electricity and gas rates, withdrawal of increased income taxes on the middle class, and shifting the tax burden to wealthy segments.
Key Questions Answered
The Jamaat-e-Islami is demanding a total withdrawal of the petroleum development tax to lower fuel prices, substantial utility rate cuts, and the removal of increased income taxes on the salaried class and industrial workers. They also call for shifting the tax burden to wealthy landowners, cutting non-development federal expenditures by about 35 percent, and removing taxes on educational materials like children's books and stationery.
After rejecting the government's appeal for deferment and beginning the Super Long March from Karachi, Peshawar, Quetta, and Lahore on Sunday, the march is scheduled to converge into a major sit-in in Islamabad on September 23.
The federal government is facing multiple protests, with the Pakistan Kisaan Ittehad announcing a massive long march from Multan and South Punjab on September 25, followed by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) launching its long march toward Islamabad on September 27.
