HYDERABAD: Acti­vists of Jamaat-i-Islami, on the call of party leadership, staged a protest demonstration and sit-in at Kohinoor Chowk on Sunday against unprecedented inflation, recent hike in the prices of fuel and other commodities and tariffs of electricity, gas and water.

The protesters were led by district emir Aqeel Ahmed Khan, Sindh deputy general secretary Hafiz Tahir Majeed, Abdul Waheed Qureshi, Abdul Qayyum Sheikh and others.

Addressing protesters, JI leaders said that they were holding protests across Pakistan on the call of party’s emir.

They vowed to offer assistance to those who were facing electricity theft cases being lodged by the Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (Hesco) and said they would drag the utility in court.

They said they would provide ration to the people in distress and asked them not to commit suicide.

District emir Khan said that JI was a strong voice against increasing prices of petroleum products and other essential commodities.

He condemned that those who were elected by the masses had left people in the lurch and shifted to posh areas like Defence after making their fortunes.

He said that a serious drop on vehicles’ movement was noticed as people were avoiding using them. He added that had the rulers given up their privileges, this would have lessened burden on the poor.

He said that poor were not even able to buy a bicycle and the salaried class was paying all taxes while feudal and bureaucrats were not paying any tax which was unacceptable.

Hafiz Tahir Majeed and Abdul Waheed Qureshi said that rulers had become ‘slaves of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’, and added that Anwar ul Haq Kakar was made caretaker prime minister overnight who himself had claimed that he could not reduce POL prices. “Her is busy taking selfies at the United Nations,” they remarked.

They urged rulers to show some seriousness as conditions were tough and people were committing suicide.

They called for taxing the rich and feudal to save poor. They also asked the caretaker government to “hold elections and go home”.

They demanded discontinuation of free petrol and electricity to rulers.

Published in Dawn, September 25th, 2023