JI to begin 'Super Long March' towards Islamabad tomorrow

The Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) will begin its planned march towards Islamabad on Sunday as the fifth round of talks between the party and the government ended without an agreement on Saturday.

The government asked the JI to postpone the protest march, citing security threats. However, JI Deputy Emir Liaquat Baloch maintained that the party would go ahead with its protest unless the levy imposed on the public was withdrawn.

Baloch said that the planned long march was necessary as the government had yet to take steps to remove the levy. The JI has been holding sit-ins in Lahore, Peshawar, Karachi and several other parts of the country since August 16 against the levy.

The government delegation assured the JI that people would soon receive “extraordinary relief”. It also informed the party that the government was facing pressure from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), whose delegation was expected to visit Pakistan soon.

The JI, however, sought concrete action instead of assurances. Baloch said the government needed to take practical measures to address the demands of the people. Otherwise, he said, the party would move ahead with its protest campaign and long march.

Tweet by Jamaat e Islami Pakistan

He announced that the JI’s “Super Long March” would start from Karachi on Sunday under the leadership of JI Emir, according to the schedule.

The government team at Saturday’s meeting included Federal Minister for Planning Ahsan Iqbal, Rana Sanaullah and Punjab Minister Khawaja Salman Rafique.

The JI delegation included Deputy Emir Liaquat Baloch, Acting Secretary General Nazir Ahmad Janjua, Special Assistant to the JI Emir Umair Idrees, JI Lahore Emir Ziauddin Ansari and Information Secretary Shakeel Ahmad Tarrabi.