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FIR lodged against Samajwadi Party’s Sambhal MP for power theft
During a raid on Thursday morning, it was found that the Samajwadi Party’s Sambhal MP’s house was using a load of 16 kVA, far exceeding the sanctioned 2 kVA, UPPCL officials alleged; power supply snapped
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An FIR of power theft was lodged against Samajwadi Party (SP) MP from Sambhal Ziaur Rahman Barq on Thursday for using power supply illegally at his residence in the Deepa Sarai locality of Sambhal district, power department and police officials said. Power supply to the MP’s house was also snapped.
“A case of power theft has been registered against MP Ziaur Rahman Barq on the complaint of electricity department officials on Thursday morning. The complaint was filed by the officials concerned from the electricity department following an inspection done at the MP’s residence,” Sambhal superintendent of police (SP) KK Bishnoi said.
Another police official said, “The FIR, based on a written complaint by sub divisional officer (SDO) Santosh Tripathi, assistant engineer (Meter) Ashish Kataria, and junior engineers Ajay Kumar Sharma and BK Gangal, alleged the MP’s 2-kilowatt connection was illegally bypassed, allowing unauthorised consumption of 16.48 kilowatts of electricity.” He said Section 135 of the Indian Electricity Act (Amendment) 2003 has been slapped against him.
“Our team that raided Ziaur Rahman Barq’s house in Sambhal on Thursday morning discovered that the house was using a load of 16 kVA, far exceeding the sanctioned 2 kVA across two connections. One connection of 2 kVA was registered under his grandfather and late former MP Shafiqur Rahman Barq’s name, while the other of 2 kVA was in his name. Additionally, the meter was found to be bypassed and was showing a reading of zero,” said UPPCL executive engineer of Sambhal Naveen Kumar Gautam.
The UPPCL officials said the inspection, conducted on the morning of December 19, was part of an ongoing drive against power theft and it revealed the bypass mechanism during a Meter Reading Instrument (MRI) analysis. They said the complaint highlights significant discrepancies in usage compared to the sanctioned meter capacity.
The UPPCL authorities have intensified efforts to curb power theft and encroachment in the Muslim-dominated Deepa Sarai locality since December 13. Over 200 cases of power theft have been registered, resulting in penalties exceeding over ₹2 crore.
The drive against power theft has sparked a political controversy in the region, with Opposition leaders questioning the administration’s motives, while residents of the locality remain wary of further raids.
On Wednesday, the SP MP filed a writ petition in the Allahabad high court seeking a stay on his arrest in connection with an FIR lodged against him over the November 24 violence during protests against the survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal. He also requested the quashing of the FIR. The police had registered an FIR against the Sambhal MP, accusing him of inciting the violence with a provocative speech during the court-ordered survey of the Mughal-era Mosque. The police alleged that his remarks contributed to the unrest that broke out during the survey.
In his petition, Ziaur Rahman Barq argued that he was wrongly implicated in the case, stating that he was not present at the scene of the incident. His counsel contended that despite his absence, Barq argued that he was wrongly implicated in Sambhal violence case. The case is expected to be taken up by the court soon. The violence followed a court order issued on November 19, directing the survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid after a suit was filed claiming that a Harihar temple once stood at the site. The second round of the survey, conducted on November 24, escalated into violent protests.
Earlier, power department junior engineers Ajay Sharma and VK Gangwal had alleged that the MP’s father threatened them with dire consequences once Samajwadi Party comes to power in the state. HTC
