Government refuses JI demand to abolish petroleum levy
Talks between Liaquat Baloch and Ishaq Dar produce fuel relief for farmers and public transport, but no commitment to end the levy.
The federal government has refused Jamaat-e-Islami's demand to abolish the petroleum levy, the party said on Tuesday, but agreed to fuel cost relief for the agriculture sector, public transport and some categories of vehicles.
Acting JI emir Liaquat Baloch reported the outcome at a press conference after talks with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar. He said negotiations on removing the levy had reached their final stage after JI's nationwide protest campaign and its submission of a six-point proposal.
Baloch said the government acknowledged that JI's demands were valid. He said the government would finish its work on oil refinery profits and a phased end to the petroleum levy on Monday, and that a working paper would be prepared on Tuesday, ProPakistani reported. JI emir Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman will announce the party's next move after reviewing the draft.
The government's account was narrower. The Foreign Office said the two sides held candid discussions on relief for low-income citizens hit by rising energy costs and agreed to keep talking over the coming days. It did not confirm any agreement to remove the levy.
Government negotiators told JI that fuel prices follow international oil rates, which are rising, and that the administration had already given every relief available to it, according to ProPakistani.
No change at the pump has been announced. Petrol and diesel prices remain where they are until a final deal is signed and notified.
If the reported relief goes ahead, farmers, transporters and owners of the listed vehicle categories would benefit first. Removing the levy would be a far bigger decision: the government aims to collect Rs1.6 trillion from it in FY2027, and the charge sits at the centre of its revenue plan.
TechJuice reported that the government has cited rising international oil prices and its limited room to offer further relief as the reason it cannot go further than the measures announced.
How the reports differ
Both outlets led with Jamaat-e-Islami's account of the talks. ProPakistani's headline called the charge an "IMF Levy", while TechJuice called it a petroleum levy. ProPakistani alone gave dates, reporting that the government would finish work on oil refinery profits and a phased end to the levy on Monday and prepare a working paper on Tuesday; TechJuice said only that a working paper was expected. TechJuice called the reported commitment a gradual withdrawal of the levy and said talks had reached their final stage following JI's six-point proposal, a sequence ProPakistani attributed to Baloch without the same detail.
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