ISLAMABAD: Final negotiations between the government and Jamaat-e-Islami over the gradual abolition of the petroleum levy and relief for the public will be held on Nov. 3, the party's deputy chief, Liaquat Baloch, said Saturday.
Baloch said Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar contacted him through WhatsApp to inform him of the date, while Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal also spoke to him by telephone and said arrangements were being made for the meeting.
He said the main objective of the negotiations was to secure the gradual withdrawal of the petroleum levy and provide relief to people struggling with rising living costs.
Baloch said the government must deliver relief to the public, warning that Jamaat-e-Islami would otherwise launch a long march from Multan to Islamabad.
He added that public rallies would be organised in Quetta, Mirpurkhas, Bahawalpur, Mansehra and Sargodha before the march.
Committees have also been formed to oversee arrangements for the proposed long march, he said.
