Jamaat‑i‑Islam to Hold 510 Nationwide Sit‑Ins Against the Petroleum Levy, Warning of Wider Protests.

On August 6, 2026, Jamaat‑i‑Islam Pakistan’s Emir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman said the organization would hold peaceful sit‑ins at 510 locations nationwide on Friday. He warned that if authorities blocked these protests, the campaign could turn into an anti‑government movement. The sit‑ins will involve blocking major roads that link districts across Pakistan from 4 p.m. onward, while ambulances will be allowed to pass. Rehman demanded that the price of petrol be reduced to Rs225 per litre and described the petroleum levy as “extortion” rather than a tax. He said the government collects Rs125 in taxes on every litre of petrol from ordinary citizens but has not invested the revenue, citing that it collected Rs8 trillion from the levy without upgrading refineries or infrastructure. The Monday rally was led by the JI Women’s Wing on Wahdat Road in Lahore, where Rehman called for people from all provinces to join. He urged the government to accept public demands or face responsibility for any consequences. The JI chief also criticised unequal access to education, an unresponsive bureaucracy, and restrictions on public dissent, claiming the government had become subservient to the International Monetary Fund. He assured that Friday’s demonstrations would remain peaceful and called on young people to bring motorcycles onto the roads to join the sit‑ins.