LAHORE: Leaders of the Pakistan Markazi Muslim League (PMML) have criticised what they described as repeated increases in petroleum prices, saying the government has failed to deliver meaningful relief to households already squeezed by inflation.
According to an official statement issued by the party, senior PMML figures warned that public anger over rising prices could carry political consequences for the ruling coalition if the pattern of fuel adjustments continues.
The criticism was voiced at a series of Seerat-un-Nabi conferences organised by the party in Kasur, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Shakargarh, Daska, Talagang, Chowk Azam, Sialkot, Hyderabad, Karachi and several other cities. The party said large numbers of citizens attended the gatherings.
Speakers at the conferences included PMML Secretary General Saifullah Qasuri, Vice Presidents Hafiz Talha Saeed and Hafiz Abdul Rauf, Joint Secretary Muhammad Yaqoob Sheikh, party spokesman Dr Muzamil Iqbal Hashmi, Mufti Yousaf Taibi, Maulana Nasar Javed, Sindh President Faisal Nadeem, Allama Nasir Madani, Ajmal Khan Chandia, Ehsanullah Mansoor, Sheikh Fayyaz Ahmed, Maulana Manzoor Ahmed and Engineer Haris Dar.
Fuel pricing has become one of the most politically sensitive issues on the national agenda, because transport costs feed directly into the price of food, freight and daily commuting for low-income households. Diesel rates in particular are watched closely in Punjab, where they shape wholesale vegetable and poultry prices. Diesel was listed at Rs403.32 per litre for Monday, 14 September 2026.
The party’s criticism also lands in the same news cycle as federal efforts to soften the impact of fuel costs on specific categories of users. The government has launched a scheme offering Rs100 off every litre of petrol for motorcycles, rickshaws and 800cc cars, details of which were reported in the story on the petrol relief package. PMML leaders did not reference the scheme in their statement.
Wider strain in the energy sector forms part of the same picture. Gas circular debt has reached Rs3,600 billion, with a three-year clearance plan prepared, as covered in a report on the gas circular debt. Energy pricing decisions are therefore rarely made in isolation from debt recovery targets and revenue commitments.
While speaking at the conferences, Saifullah Qasuri said success lay in following the Seerat of the Holy Prophet (PBUH). He said the slogan of “La Ilaha Illallah” had been raised at the time of Pakistan’s creation, and that the PMML was working to promote a system based on those principles.
Hafiz Talha Saeed told participants that Pakistan’s defence and the defence of the Muslim world were closely linked, adding that a strong and stable Pakistan could play an important role in strengthening the Muslim world.
Hafiz Abdul Rauf and Muhammad Yaqoob Sheikh said the message of the Seerat needed to be promoted more actively, particularly in the age of social media.
Dr Muzamil Iqbal Hashmi and other speakers said the Holy Prophet (PBUH) had established principles of justice, knowledge and social responsibility. They urged young people to study the Seerat and apply its teachings in their daily lives, adding that Pakistan’s future should be built on character, honesty, justice and public service.
The remarks place the PMML alongside other religio-political parties that have made cost-of-living pressure a central plank of their public messaging this year. Street mobilisation on economic grievances has continued in Lahore, where a Jamaat-e-Islami sit-in on Mall Road has entered its 30th day. Whether religious conference platforms translate into sustained political pressure on pricing policy remains to be seen.
The claims in this report are attributed to the PMML’s own statement.
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