The Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) and the federal government have reached general agreement on the framework of a draft deal meant to bring relief to people who buy petrol and other fuels. The understanding followed the 10th round of negotiations between the two sides, held in Islamabad on Tuesday. The deal is still at the draft stage, and JI has said the talks must produce a concrete agreement on abolishing the levy, or the party may renew its protest march.
After the Tuesday session, JI deputy emir Liaquat Baloch said the two sides had recognised the need to widen existing relief measures, particularly for households on low incomes. He added that the government had accepted that his party's demand to abolish the levy was legitimate. The petroleum levy is a charge on petroleum products, and it adds to what consumers pay at the pump.
Pakistan's fuel prices are revised from time to time, and charges such as the levy form part of what buyers pay. Any change to the levy therefore reaches vehicle owners, transporters and households through the price they see at the pump.
Where the two sides differ
Baloch said JI had proposed extending relief to vehicles with engines of up to 1,000cc, as well as to the agricultural sector. Engine size is measured in cubic centimetres (cc), so a 1,000cc limit covers many small cars and motorcycles. He also criticised the government for refusing to cut its own spending while passing the cost on to consumers.
The government's approach, as the talks stand, is more gradual. It plans to consult the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the lender Pakistan works with under a loan programme, on continuing the relief and reducing the levy step by step. No final decision on the levy has been announced.
What happens next
The talks now move to the details of the draft, including which groups would receive relief and how quickly the levy could come down. JI has set a clear condition: without a concrete agreement on abolishing the levy, the party could resume its march toward Islamabad. No date has been given for the next round of talks or for the IMF consultation.
Aasan alfaaz mein
JI aur federal government ne petroleum levy par relief ke liye ek draft muahide ke khaake par ittefaq kiya hai. Dono taraf kam aamdani walay gharanon ko zyada madad dene par ittefaq hua hai. Levy khatam karne ka mutalba abhi poora nahi hua, aur JI ne kaha hai ke baat na bani to lambi march dobara shuru ho sakti hai. Abhi petrol ki qeemat mein tabdeeli ka koi amount nahi bataya gaya, is liye aam logon ko final faislay ka intezar karna hoga.
