Dr Raheeq Ahmad Abbasi, Secretary General of Minhaj-ul-Quran International, has said that the government’s act of hiking the prices of POL products certifies that it is implementing anti-people policies at the behest of IMF and does not have any economic agenda to cure the ills currently plaguing the economy. He said that the recent raise in prices of POL products would further aggravate dearness, add to inflation and deprive people of their right to semblance of life. He said that MQI and Pakistan Awami Tehreek strongly condemn this action of the government and demand of the ruling elite to cut down on their lavish expenditures to meet the growing fiscal deficit.

Dr Abbasi lamented the lack of intervention by the Parliament, saying that the rulers’ claims of parliamentary sovereignty are fake as Parliament remains toothless on substantive policy issues. It, he added, is a sort of debating forum where issues are brought up for meaningless discussion once decision has been taken to make it wear the garb of parliamentary approval. He asked the government to review this recent price hike.