Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) deputy chief Liaqat Baloch on Monday announced the party will lead a shutter-down strike nationwide on Aug. 28 (Wednesday) to pressure the government into providing relief to the general public.
Addressing a press conference in Islamabad, he urged the trader community to unite in observing the strike against inflation, high electricity prices and new taxes. He warned that any government attempt to prevent the strike could trigger backlash and unrest.
Recalling that his party had staged a sit-in at Rawalpindi for two weeks that had ended after the government inked an agreement pledging to provide relief to public, he said it had included a one-month deadline for reviewing contracts with independent power producers (IPPs). Demanding the government implement the agreement, he indicated that the JI could initiate a long march on Islamabad if this does not occur.