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Chandigarh: Congress activists protesting power privatisation detained by police
The party activists, led by Chandigarh Congress president HS Lucky, were carrying placards and black flags against privatisation of public assets
A number of Congress activists were detained near the Sector 18-19 light point on Saturday while they were marching towards Punjab Raj Bhawan to protest privatisation of the Chandigarh electricity department.
The party activists, led by Chandigarh Congress president HS Lucky, were carrying placards and black flags against privatisation of public assets. The protesters also included members of residents’ welfare associations, villagers and non-government, the party said.
As they began their march towards Punjab Raj Bhawan around noon, they were stopped by a heavy contingent of police and paramilitary forces. Amid the melee, Lucky and other senior leaders were detained and taken to the Sector 19 police station.
Earlier, addressing the protesters, Lucky alleged that a well-managed and profit-making electricity department of Chandigarh was being handed over on a platter to a private player, who had funded the BJP in the past.
He said the Chandigarh electricity department had been so efficient that even after charging one of the lowest tariffs in the country, its complaint resolution time was among the lowest in the country and the line losses here were pegged at just about 10%.
Later, a memorandum to this effect was submitted to the UT administrator through DSP Dilbagh Singh, wherein it was apprehended that the private contractor will increase the electric tariff in the city manifolds after taking over. A plea to withdraw the move to privatise the electricity department in the interest of city residents was made in the memorandum.
The Congress party alleged that first the BJP imposed back-breaking taxes on the people of Chandigarh during their eight-year tenure in the municipal corporation till early 2024, and now they were tormenting the city residents by privatising electricity transmission.
The activists who were detained were released later.
