PESHAWAR: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf activists on Sunday staged rallies in different parts of the province against the increase in prices of petroleum products, which they said would push more people into poverty.

The demonstrations were staged in the district headquarters, led by the local leaders.

In Peshawar, the protest was staged outside the press club, led by the Peshawar district president, Irfan Saleem, and the minister for local government, Meena Khan Afridi.

Addressing the protesters, Mr Afridi said that following the Iranian conflict, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif appeared on television promising not to shift the burden of the price hike to the masses, but in vain.

Govt asked to provide relief to people

He alleged that these prices were hiked overnight to benefit “favourites and cronies”. He noted that petrol, which stood at Rs150 during Imran Khan’s government, had been increased to Rs380 per litre.

He appealed to the business community, transporters, students, and government employees to rise and oust rulers for failing to provide employment or economic stability.

Speaking at the rally, Mr Saleem said that the people no longer had the strength to endure such economic ‘brutality’. He questioned the logic of the government’s excuses, saying, “It is absurd that a war is happening in Iran, yet its effects are being used to exploit people here.”

In Swabi, a protest demonstration was held in Gohati market against the massive increase in the prices of petroleum products. The call for the strike was given by the Gohati Welfare Jirga. The protesters demanded that the oil prices be immediately curtailed.

While chanting slogans against the government, the protesters said that, compared with other countries in the region, petroleum products were the most expensive in Pakistan.

The protesters said that the rising prices of petrol and diesel had made the lives of ordinary citizens miserable.

In Mansehra, the PTI invited other political parties to join its agitation against the federal government, accusing it of plunging the country into economic and political turmoil.

“The federal government, which came into power through a stolen mandate, has destroyed the country economically and politically. We invite all political parties to join us in our agitation against inflation, as this is not just our party and our incarcerated leader’s issue; it is about the entire nation,” Kamal Saleem Swati, PTI deputy provincial president, told a rally here.

The rally, which started from the press club, culminated outside the tehsil municipal administration offices after passing through various roads.

Holding banners and placards, the protesters raised slogans in support of their demands and against the federal government.

Mr Swati said it was the PTI government which, during the coronavirus pandemic, not only managed government affairs effectively but also provided relief to deserving and low-income people.

In Haripur, PTI’s local leadership on Sunday staged a protest against the recent hike in petroleum prices.

Led by former opposition leader in the national assembly Omar Ayub Khan, provincial minister Arshad Ayub Khan, MPAs Akbar Ayub Khan, Malik Adeel, and former provincial minister Yousuf Ayub Khan, the PTI’s workers took a ride on tongas from their office to the press club to register their protest.

Speaking to journalists, the PTI’s leaders condemned the spike in petroleum prices and attributed it to what they called the ineptness of the federal government.

In Mohmand, PTI activists staged a demonstration in Ghalanai against rising petroleum prices, with party leaders terming the increase “unjustified” and “burdensome” for the public.

The protest was held outside the Mohmand Press Club, where a large number of workers and residents gathered.

Among those present were MNA Sajid Khan Mohmand, MPA Dr Israr and former chairman of Lower Mohmand Malik Naveed Ahmed.

Published in Dawn, April 6th, 2026