PPP slams petrol price increase as Ramzan nears, demands rollback

ISLAMABAD: Central Spokesperson of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Shazia Marri on Monday criticised the federal government for increasing petrol and high-speed diesel (HSD) prices just days before Ramzan, calling the move “unjust” and “highly unfair.”

The government on Sunday night raised petrol by Rs5 per litre and HSD by Rs7.32 per litre, bringing the ex-depot price of petrol to Rs258.17 per litre and HSD to Rs275.70 per litre.

Officials said the new rates would remain in effect until the end of February in line with international market fluctuations.

In a social media post shared on the PPP’s official page, Marri described the price hike as a “petrol bomb” dropped on citizens at a time when households were already struggling with record inflation.

She said the move was “highly unfair and unwise” and criticised the government for imposing additional financial burdens on the public ahead of the holy month.

Marri warned that the increase would severely affect low-income families, labourers, and the middle class, while also triggering a rise in food and transportation costs. She urged the government to focus on providing relief to citizens rather than compounding economic hardships.

Highlighting what she called policy contradictions, she pointed out that the government was simultaneously announcing a Ramzan relief package while approving measures that would push up inflation. “On one hand, the government is announcing a Ramzan relief package, while on the other, it is fuelling inflation through price hikes. It is a clear policy failure,” she said.

She called on the federal government to immediately review and withdraw the increase in petroleum prices and take concrete steps to address unemployment, inflation, and the broader economic crisis, ensuring tangible relief for the public ahead of Ramzan.