Jamaat-e-Islami Chitral Warns of Islamabad March if Petroleum Levy Is Not Abolished

On the appeal of Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan Emir Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman, strong protest demonstrations were held in Chitral and Upper Chitral, as elsewhere across the country, against increases in petroleum product prices and the petroleum levy. The government was warned that if the demands were not accepted, a long march to Islamabad and a sit-in would be staged.

Addressing a protest demonstration in Lower Chitral, Jamaat-e-Islami Chitral Emir Wajihuddin said the protest movement had been postponed on the prime minister’s assurance, but had been restarted because that promise was broken. He strongly condemned the imposition of governor’s rule in the province and the arrests of political workers, saying it was regrettable that political workers were being targeted for retaliation instead of those accused of looting public resources.

Referring to an inquiry report by former Lower Chitral Deputy Commissioner Rao Hashim Azeem, he called for immediate and transparent investigations into those responsible for alleged corruption in Chitral’s development projects, disaster management and beautification efforts.

Wajihuddin expressed concern over severe power outages in Drosh and Chitral and mismanagement by the department. He said residents of a region that produces 106 megawatts of electricity had been left at the mercy of only three linemen and three meter readers. He called for an immediate end to delays in meter readings, the issuing of large cumulative bills covering several months at once, and unnecessary load-shedding.

Meanwhile, a large protest gathering was held at Boni Chowk in Upper Chitral after Friday prayers, chaired by Jamaat-e-Islami Upper Chitral Emir Asad ur Rehman. Deputy Secretary Shujauddin Lal, Vice Emir Mukhtar Ahmad Lal, General Secretary Ashfaq Ahmad and Youth President (Morkhow) Amin ur Rehman also addressed the gathering.

The speakers described the petroleum levy as “extortion” rather than a tax, saying that the pockets of poor people were being looted to fund the luxuries of the elite. In his address as chair, Asad ur Rehman made clear that Upper Chitral’s workers were fully prepared, at the call of the central leadership, to march to Islamabad and hold a sit-in.

He criticized what he called the local administration’s double standards, saying that the law remained silent when thousands gathered for sports and entertainment, but Section 144 was imposed when people spoke about their rights. Asad ur Rehman demanded that the decision to impose taxes on Malakand Division be withdrawn and that the Tehsil Headquarters Hospital in Boni be upgraded from Category D to Category C. He said the All Parties’ protest against outsourcing the hospital as a Category D facility had only been postponed temporarily; if the issue was not resolved, a sit-in would be held again.

At the end of the protest gathering, Vice Emir Mukhtar Ahmad offered a prayer.

Source: Chitral Express (Urdu).