Islamabad, April 25: Pakistan's Human Rights Council (HRC) has sharply condemned the latest fuel price hike announced by the Pakistani government, describing it as an 'economic suicide attack' on ordinary citizens. The revised petroleum prices — effective Saturday, April 26 — include an increase of Rs 26.77 per litre each on both petrol and high-speed diesel (HSD), as notified by the Ministry of Energy (Petroleum Division). The move has triggered fierce backlash from rights groups and civil society amid an already crippling inflation crisis.

What the Government Said

Pakistan's Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik defended the hike, citing mounting regional tensions and international oil market pressures. He stated that due to 'rising oil prices and agreements with global partners', the government was compelled to pass the financial burden on to the public, as quoted by Pakistani business daily Business Recorder.

The government's justification, however, has done little to quell public anger. Critics argue that invoking geopolitical pressures as a rationale has become a recurring deflection tactic by Islamabad, even as elite privileges and government expenditures remain largely untouched.

HRC's Scathing Indictment

The Human Rights Council of Pakistan issued a strongly worded statement, warning that repeated fuel price increases are not merely a 'numerical change' but rather 'an invitation to a storm of inflation that has already broken the back of the common man.'

The Council's chairperson stressed that access to a dignified life is a fundamental human right, and that cascading price rises in transport, medicines, and essential commodities risk pushing poor and middle-class Pakistanis below the poverty line.

'The government should listen to the cries of the public and formulate economic policies that are pro-poor, not anti-public. We demand that privileges for the elite be reduced so that the common citizen gets a chance to breathe,' the HRC chairperson said.

The rights body demanded an immediate review of what it called an 'oppressive decision' and urged emergency measures to provide direct relief to citizens.

Scale of the Crisis: A Pattern of Hikes

This latest revision is not an isolated incident. Earlier in April 2025, the Pakistani government announced a dramatic surge in fuel costs — petrol prices rose by 43 per cent and high-speed diesel by 55 per cent — in what was already one of the steepest single-month adjustments in Pakistan's recent economic history.

Pakistan has been navigating a severe economic crisis, compounded by its ongoing IMF bailout programme, foreign exchange reserve depletion, and structural fiscal deficits. The government's repeated recourse to fuel price hikes reflects the constraints of its international financial commitments, particularly conditions tied to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) agreement that mandates reduction of energy subsidies.

Impact on Citizens and the Broader Economy

Fuel price hikes in Pakistan have a multiplier effect on daily life. Rising diesel costs directly inflate freight and logistics charges, which in turn push up prices of food, medicines, and consumer goods. For a country where a significant portion of the population already lives near or below the poverty line, each successive hike erodes purchasing power at an accelerating rate.

Economists and civil society observers note a stark contradiction: while the government cites global oil market pressures, Pakistan's ruling elite continues to enjoy subsidised utilities, government vehicles, and lavish official perks — a disparity the HRC explicitly flagged in its statement demanding 'reduction in elite privileges.'

The Pakistani rupee's continued depreciation against the US dollar further compounds the problem, as oil imports become costlier in local currency terms, creating a self-reinforcing cycle of price escalation that disproportionately burdens wage earners and informal sector workers.

What Comes Next

With Pakistan's IMF programme reviews ongoing and regional tensions — particularly in the context of India-Pakistan relations following recent geopolitical developments — showing no signs of immediate de-escalation, further fuel price adjustments cannot be ruled out in the coming weeks. The HRC has called for emergency legislative and executive action, but with Islamabad's fiscal space severely constrained, meaningful relief for ordinary Pakistanis remains uncertain. Civil society groups are expected to intensify pressure campaigns as the economic strain deepens across urban and rural communities alike.