JI leaders have embarked on a nationwide protest against price escalation, the rising cost of living, and the increase in utility bills, which have made the lives of the poor and the salaried middle class miserable.
I am sure Maulana Siraj and other leaders of JI are aware that the present crisis is due to tax revenues being far below what they should be. Smuggling and black marketing are curses, and our religion has termed them sins against society. The other main reason is tax evasion by retail traders, wholesale dealers, big landlords, real estate cartels, tobacco, and other sectors involved in profitable commercial ventures. JI Dharnas and Protests should be against all those involved in depriving the state of taxes due from them and the hoarders and smugglers.
Mere vocal protests and demonstrations without pinpointing the root causes are what almost all political parties have been doing when not in power. PTI held power for almost four years, as have PMLN, PPP, etc., before them, both in the provinces and Islamabad, but they all failed to increase the tax net and instead resorted to indirect taxation, which impacts the poor more than the affluent elite. Politicians, especially religious parties, must stop “Hunting with Hounds and Running with Hares.”
ALI MALIK T,
Lahore.
