LAHORE: Opposition parties have reacted sharply to an increase in petroleum prices and asked the federal government to immediately withdraw the notification because that will make life of a common man miserable.

In a joint statement, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) leaders Aleem Khan, Yasmin Rashid and Ejaz Chaudhry called the step cruel and demanded its instant withdrawal, saying it could prove tough for people.

The government, they said, was failing on every promise; it promised to end loadshedding this year, but worst crisis was going on despite the mercury dropping to freezing point. It is providing relief through ever-increasing hike in prices of eatables. Something seems seriously wrong with this approach, they said.

The Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) also rejected the increase in petroleum prices and demanded its immediate withdrawal. The provincial chief of JI claimed that a rise in petroleum prices would only make life of the poor harder, as they were already surviving on the edge. The federal government should immediately withdraw the decision, he demanded.

Almost a daily increase in prices of necessities had taken a toll on the common man. The hike was a direct result of government policies. People were committing suicides because of the ever-increasing prices of daily goods, he claimed. During electioneering, the PML-N rode atop promises of bringing relief to the common man, but instead it was making life virtually impossible.

Both parties also submitted a resolution against the petroleum prices in the Punjab Assembly where they would be able to take up the issue during the session next week.

Published in Dawn January 17th, 2017