New Delhi: Activist Arvind Kejriwal will carry on his crusade against the Delhi government over inflated electricity bills for the third day in a row. He has planned to protest outside the office of the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission on Monday. Since Saturday, the IAC member and his associates have been burning electricity bills and personally fixing power connections as a mark of protest.
On Sunday, they visited the house of a person who died of heart attack after discom officials raided his house suspecting power theft. A day after launching his 'bijli-paani satyagraha', Kejriwal started Sunday's protest by visiting the house of 65-year-old Kailash Chand, who died of a heart attack following the raid at his house in Najafgarh. Kejriwal said the household had an electricity bill of very low amount due to which officials suspected Chand of committing power theft. "Even though he had paid his bill, the officials entered his place through back door and cut off his power supply," Kejriwal alleged.
Officials, however, claimed the discom was undertaking routine mass-inspections in the area to detect power-theft and police was accompanying them. The officials alleged that the electricity meter was found by-passed and a power theft of around 5 KW was detected at the premises of Chand. They claimed they have photographs and video recording of the way the meter was by-passed.
Chand's wife Bimla alleged that four persons entered their house, had an argument and manhandled her husband. She claimed that those who came to the house said the family was stealing power and that was why the bill was only Rs 550. Later, Kejriwal and others held protests 114 municipal wards spread in in 62 constituencies in Delhi and burnt electricity bills to protest against hike in power tariff. Besides Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia, Gopal Rai and Kumar Vishwas joined people in several protest spots.
Meanwhile, Kejriwal said, "people in Delhi should stop paying their water and electricity bills from today. The power is ours, and not of chief minister's and a few private companies." People should not feel scared and they should restore power connections on their own if they were disconnected, the activist said. "If action is taken against you, be ready to court arrest," he said.
(With additional information from PTI)
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