Jamaat-e-Islami Calls Nationwide Strike to Pressure Government for Relief

Jamaat-e-Islami announces shutter-down strike on August 28 to demand relief from inflation and high electricity prices. The move follows successful negotiations with the government and a 14-day protest. JI warns of anarchy if the strike is hindered and hints at a possible long march to Islamabad.

The Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Naib, Emir Liaqat Baloch, declared that the religio-political party will stage a nationwide shutter-down strike on August 28. This move aims to pressure the government into providing economic relief, Geo News reported.

Speaking at a press conference in Islamabad, Baloch said the trader community had unanimously decided to observe the strike against inflation, exorbitant electricity prices, and heavy taxes. He cautioned that any government attempt to thwart the protest could lead the country into chaos. He recalled that JI had previously conducted a 14-day protest in Rawalpindi and negotiated with the federal government, which had agreed to provide relief to inflation-burdened citizens.

Baloch indicated that a one-month deadline had been set to review contracts with independent power producers (IPPs) as part of the agreement. He demanded that the government implement these terms and hinted at further actions, including a long march to Islamabad, if necessary. The JI had only postponed its sit-in after signing the agreement, underlining their continued struggle for national relief.

Before announcing the strike, JI Emir Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman had called for another protest two weeks earlier, urging peaceful demonstrations in collaboration with trader groups. Notably, these protests follow the party's postponed 14-day sit-in on August 9, after successful negotiations targeting issues such as high power tariffs and IPP agreements, which have inflated citizens’ electricity bills, Geo News reported. (ANI)