World News | PML-N Leader Maryam Nawaz Flays Pak Govt for Petrol Price Hike

Islamabad, Aug 16 (PTI) The Pakistan government was on the back foot on Tuesday after coming under fire from one of its own top leaders following the latest hike in the petrol price.

The coalition government led by Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) on Monday increased the price of petrol and reduced those of high-speed diesel (HSD) and kerosene for the next fortnight.

Also Read | Russia Warns of Direct Military Clash With US, Says 'America Acts With No Regard to Security and Interests of Other Countries'.

PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz took to Twitter and said former premier and party chief Nawaz Sharif had strongly opposed the decision to raise the price of petrol. She said Sharif, who is living in London, “left a meeting” held to discuss the issue of price hike.

Finance Minister Miftah Ismail in response was on the defensive, saying that the revision does not include any new taxes.

Also Read | Sri Lanka: Chinese Spy Ship ‘Yuan Wang 5’ Docks at Hambantota Port Despite Security Concerns Raised by India (Watch Video).

"The increase or decrease in prices is according to the purchasing by Pakistan State Oil (PSO)," he tweeted.

Ismail elaborated that the country's Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) takes the average Platt prices, adds freight and the premium paid by the Pakistan State Oil (PSO) company on top of these prices, and multiplies that by the exchange rate.

"We have not added any new tax or levy to the price. The price of petrol has gone up (and diesel has gone down) because the cost paid by PSO in the previous fortnight was more than the cost estimated by Ogra and also because the premium paid by PSO on petrol increased and [the] premium paid on diesel remained unchanged," Ismail said.

The minister said that the fuel price summary was moved by Ogra and sent to the Finance Division through the Petroleum Division.

"I am an easy target. Which is fine. But this price change only reflects the change in PSO costs and doesn't have any new taxes," he said.

Later, Ismail addressed a press conference where he confirmed being part of the meeting that discussed fuel prices, but refused to provide further details.

He said that the government's coalition allies should also be congratulated for "burning their political capital" to pull the country out of economic difficulties.

He said the government would charge Rs 10 per liter as petroleum levy from September 1 as already committed with the International Monetary Fund which is expected to meet on August 29 and decide to provide a much-needed loan to Pakistan.

The issue of petroleum prices and provision of loans by the IMF are closely linked. After coming to power in April, the PML-N led government has struggled to find a balance in the petroleum prices and demands of the fund.

So far, it has failed and the prices constantly went up and petrol touched almost Rs 250, the highest in the history of the country, until Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced a reduction of Rs 18 to 40 per litre in the prices of various products as international prices went down.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)