ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) has rejected the increase in petroleum prices, terming it an economic assault on inflation-hit and poverty-stricken masses.

In a statement on Saturday, PTI Central Information Secretary Sheikh Waqas Akram condemned the repeated increase in fuel prices by the government, adding diesel had been raised by Rs27 per litre (7.6pc) and petrol by Rs27 per litre (7.3pc), further burdening already overburdened citizens.

He said the economic measures had exposed Shehbaz Sharif’s governance, as it continued to rely on excessive petroleum development levy and indirect taxation to cover widening fiscal gaps in the absence of any meaningful economic growth.

“Inflation in the country has reached historic highs, as flour, sugar, ghee, electricity and gas prices have surged at a neck-breaking pace, making life for the common citizen a misery,” he said.

Moreover, salaries have remained frozen and employees are being underpaid, while the prices of essential commodities continue to rise on an almost daily basis, relentlessly squeezing household budgets and pushing even the struggling middle class below the poverty line, he added.

“Today, the poor in Pakistan are fighting merely to survive. Millions of families are unable to secure even two meals a day due to the myopic and shortsighted policies of the incumbent rulers,” said Mr Akram.

He criticised the rulers for being engrossed in statistical manipulation while ground realities tell a far grimmer story.

He highlighted the alarming findings of the 2026 Global Report on Food Crises, which places Pakistan among 10 countries facing acute food insecurity with approximately 11 million people affected.

He warned that rampant inflation, rising fuel costs and negligible economic growth were clear indicators of stagflation, leading to rising unemployment, wage erosion and deepening poverty across the country.

He said Pakistanis were currently reeling under unprecedented economic hardship, while the government appeared indifferent to the suffering of ordinary citizens.

He said disconnect between the ruling elite and the masses reflected a deepening governance crisis and demanded immediate relief measures to address rising fuel prices, inflation and food insecurity.

“PTI demands the immediate withdrawal of the petroleum price hike and calls for urgent, effective measures to control spiralling inflation,” he said.

Mr Akram said PTI had made it clear that it would not abandon the people and would continue to raise its voice at every forum for the protection of citizens’ rights, democratic freedoms and economic justice.

Published in Dawn, April 26th, 2026