LAHORE: Jamaat-e-Islami chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman on Sunday warned the government that it would be responsible for any situation if the authorities prevented his party from holding its public rally at Liaquat Bagh in Rawalpindi, saying roads in the city would be blocked if permission was denied.

“The government will be responsible for the consequences if we are not allowed to hold our rally,” Mr Rehman said while addressing a press conference on the 15th day of the JI sit-in outside the Punjab Chief Minister’s House.

He said the administration had locked Liaquat Bagh and was refusing to allow the JI to hold its rally. He added that JI workers were ready to break the locks and enter the venue, but the leadership had stopped them.

“We are peaceful people. Give us permission to hold our rally,” he said, warning that if the government denied permission, protests would be staged in Rawalpindi and Islamabad and roads across the two cities would be blocked.

The JI chief said the government had initially contacted the party and had been told how negotiations could be held. “We have never closed the doors to dialogue. The government now understands that JI is not going away,” he said.

Nationwide strike

He reiterated that the JI would hold a nationwide strike on Sept 3 and would expand its movement afterwards if its demands were not accepted.

The JI leader called for an end to free fuel for the bureaucracy, gas concessions and electricity subsidies enjoyed by privileged groups.

Turning to public transport, Mr Rehman criticised the government for presenting the Metro Bus and Orange Line projects as major achievements.

“Many countries have modern underground railway systems,” he said, arguing that Lahore should also have developed a subway network. He questioned why Pakistan could not build underground rail systems when Iran had undertaken such projects despite international restrictions.

He expressed concern over terrorism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and unrest in Balochistan, saying the existing system had failed to address the country’s problems.

Published in Dawn, August 31st, 2026