JI rejects proposed increase in gas tariff

PESHAWAR: The Jamaat-e-Islami has expressed concern over the proposed hike in gas tariff at the onset of the winter and asked the government to refrain from any such increase and announced to launch a protest drive against it from today.

Addressing a news conference here on Wednesday district president of Jamaat-e-Islami Bahrullah Khan said that the federal government had proposed a 194 percent increase in the prices of gas, which, he said, would bring about a new wave of price-hike in the country.

Accompanied by party leaders including Khalid Gul Mohmand, Sanaullah and Mustaq Khalil, he said that the government was not ready to put the burden of price-hike on the elite class including generals, judges, bureaucrats and the privileged class and it was subjecting the common man of the entire mess on the directives of the IMF.

He said that during the previous months, the electricity bills had made life a living hell for the people and now in case of an increase in the gas prices, it will make life of the people difficult.

The JI leader said that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was producing 450 Cubic Feet of gas, while the total need of the people of the province was just 170 Cubic Feet.

He said that CNG stations were functional in KP only to which the job of two million people was attached. There are 450 CNG stations in the province, which were providing the cheaper fuel to 1.9 million commercial and private vehicles, he said.

He announced that JI would launch a protest campaign against the possible increase in gas prices from today. Protest demonstrations would be arranged in the provincial metropolis. An All Parties Conference would be convened on October 31.

“If the government failed to review the decision of increase in gas prices, we will stage a sit-in outside Governor’s House and will call for a complete shutdown and wheel-jam strike”, he announced.