‘What a tragedy’: Pakistanis slam Shehbaz govt as country’s inflation hits record high of 36.4%, outpaces Sri Lanka
Pakistan’s year-on-year inflation surged to a record high of 36.4 per cent in April, the highest in Asia. Pakistan’s inflation is now more than bankrupt Sri Lanka’s, which recorded a sharp decline from 50.3 per cent in March to 35.3 per cent in April. Inflation in Pakistan, which has been struggling to secure a bailout package from IMF to avoid default, soared to a record level because of a weaker currency, skyrocketing food prices, and rising energy costs.
Pakistan’s finance ministry has projected that inflation would remain in the range of 36-38 per cent mainly due to the rupee’s depreciation and rising prices, which contributed to the increase in overall prices. The Pakistani rupee is one of the worst-performing currencies globally so far, declining 20 per cent to the dollar in 2023.
As per the data, transport prices climbed 56.8 per cent while food inflation rose 48.1 per cent in April from a year earlier. While in Sri Lanka, food inflation decreased to 30.6 per cent in April from 47.6 per cent in March and non-food inflation declined to 37.6 per cent from 51.7 per cent in March 2023.
Pakistan, faring worse than Sri Lanka, has roiled many in the troubled country, who are now blaming Finance Minister Ishaq Dar and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for the worsening crisis at home.
Former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, too, lambasted the current government headed by PM Shehbaz Sharif. He said inflation stood at 12.6 per cent when a vote of no confidence was tabled against him last year. “Today inflation in Pak outpaces Sri Lanka as Asia’s fastest,” he wrote. Khan further said this “imported govt” has crushed the masses and especially the salaried class under record inflation in the country’s history.
“Ironically their excuse for bringing abt regime change was to control inflation. Instead, all they have achieved is NROs for their money laundering & corruption while destroying economy & violating Constitution & all laws so that law of the jungle prevails in Pak today,” he said.
Khan was referring to the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO), a controversial law that provided amnesty to politicians, bureaucrats, and other public officials accused of corruption, embezzlement, and other crimes committed between January 1, 1986, and October 12, 1999.
Commenting on the report on high inflation, Vishal Sehgal, a Twitter user, suggested Finance Minister Dar and PM Sharif don’t care about the economy as they are busy fighting Imran Khan, who wants an early election. “But does Ishaq Dar or his leader CM Shehbaz care? Nope! They are just busy fighting with the judiciary or #ImranKhan. #Pakistan has the fastest rising prices in #Asia, which have left behind even #SriLanka where #inflation was measured at 35.3% in April,” he wrote.
