ISLAMABAD: Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) has launched its march towards Islamabad to demand the abolition of the petroleum levy, with party chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman warning that the protest could enter a new phase if the government fails to withdraw the levy.

The JI chief addressed supporters at Karachi’s Cantonment Railway Station on Sunday before departing for Islamabad as part of the party’s planned train march.

The party has been holding protests and sit-ins across Pakistan against the petroleum levy and has rejected the government’s recent fuel relief package as insufficient. The government currently imposes taxes and duties of Rs114 per litre on petrol and Rs100 per litre on diesel.

The JI said its train march from Karachi would travel towards Islamabad, with a rally scheduled in Rohri, Sukkur, on Sunday evening. The protesters are expected to leave for Multan on Monday.

The party had earlier announced that caravans from different parts of the country would also move towards Islamabad. Hafiz Naeem has said the JI wants the protest to remain peaceful and has called for the petroleum levy to be abolished.

The JI and government have held several rounds of talks over the petroleum levy, but the negotiations have so far failed to produce an agreement. The government has also urged the party to reconsider the march amid concerns over security and disruption in Islamabad.

Hafiz Naeem has warned that if the government does not abolish the petroleum levy, the JI’s campaign could move beyond the current protests and develop into a campaign seeking to remove the government.