RAWALPINDI, April 4: PML-N's central leadership may be focused on protesting the electricity crisis, but its local leadership is preparing to join a strike against the rise in prices of fuel, if and when the transporters and traders decide so.

"But it is yet to be decided whether we should participate in street protests with or without party flags," one party worker said.

PML-N's deputy secretary general Ahsan Iqbal, however, said the party had not taken any decision about oil price-related protests.

"Right now we are into the issue of prolonged electricity loadshedding which is the result of flawed policies of federal government, and there are protests in various cities," he told Dawn.

But the PML-N leader did criticise the hike in fuel prices. The massive increase was mainly because the federal government made the commodity "a source of revenue generation, ignoring the fact that it triggers an inflationary spiral", he said. Business groups hit most by the increase in fuel costs are the CNG sector and the transporters. Even after the subsequent reduction, one litre petrol costs Rs102.32 and one kg of CNG Rs86.75.

While the business community has rejected that reduction, the CNG sector held two rounds of talks with the minister for petroleum on Wednesday to find a solution but both ended inconclusively.

"Though we are moving in the right direction, the hitch is the government's bad record. We don't want to fall for unkept promises again," said Chairman All Pakistan CNG Association Ghiyas Paracha. "There has to be more than verbal commitments from the ministry officials this time."

The transporters also have written to the petroleum ministry and the secretary transport Punjab either withdraw the increase in fuel prices or raise the fares accordingly.

"At the most we will wait until Sunday for a reply.

Meanwhile, negotiations are underway with the transport unions all over Punjab," said Haji Sultan Awan, Chairman Twin City Transporters Union and the general secretary of Muttahida Transport Federation.

"We want to make sure that entire local transport, including bus wagon, taxi, rickshaw, respond to the call for a strike, if given," he added.

Haji Awan reminded that the last fare adjustment was made in February 2010, when the authorities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad jointly decided to reduce the fares by Re1 and Rs2."Then CNG was Rs45 per kg. Look what the rate is now," he said.

Meanwhile, the business community of Rawalpindi and Islamabad looked intent on taking to the streets. It rejected the downward revision in the prices of petroleum products as a cruel joke.

"We will intensify protests against the price hike and will go to any extent to get our basic rights," said Malik Sohail Hussain, vice-president National Traders Alliance and a senior member of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry.

Addressing a protest rally in Blue Area, Islamabad, he said harsh policies and unilateral decisions had been systematically destroying economy and hurting the business community.