JI Launches ‘Super Long March’ Against Fuel Levy In Khyber

News Desk
JAMRUD: Scores of Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) workers and supporters on Sunday launched their heavily anticipated ‘Super Long March’ from the historic Bab-i-Khyber toward Islamabad, demanding the immediate withdrawal of the petroleum levy and soaring utility taxes.
Led by JI Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Emir Abdul Wasay alongside former provincial lawmakers and local leadership, the demonstration marked the formal commencement of a nationwide anti-inflation campaign called by party chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman.
Addressing the charged participants following a brief kickoff rally at the monument, party leaders launched a scathing critique of the federal administration, accusing it of imposing unjustified financial burdens on inflation-stricken citizens. Speakers maintained that excessive taxation policies have crippled the purchasing power of the working and middle classes, declaring that the government has failed to meet the basic economic expectations of the public and must consequently step down.
The protest march highlights mounting public resentment against the state’s stringent fiscal consolidation measures, which have been negotiated under international financial programs to stabilize the macroeconomy. While the government defends levies as vital for revenue generation and fiscal deficit control, political analysts warn that protracted street agitations could deepen political instability and aggravate socio-economic polarization across the country.
According to the itinerary released by the organizers, the caravan of demonstrators is scheduled to spend the night in Bara before advancing toward Peshawar on Monday. From Peshawar, the marchers will resume their onward journey toward the federal capital, where leadership plans to stage a prominent demonstration pressing authorities to roll back the controversial levies.