The public is criticising and resorting to protest demonstrations, not only in the capital city Peshawar but also in the rest of the region, against the repeated increases in power prices by the government.
The public and traders union in Peshawar have submitted a writ in the Peshawar High Court against fuel surcharge in electricity bills and have challenged the increase in power prices. The court has issued notices to the power departments including NEPRA, TESCO and Wapda and has called Deputy Attorney General and Advocate General to the court for the next hearing of the case.
Likewise, both PESCO and TESCO have been refrained by the court not to collect electricity bills from power consumers and to send out electricity bills to the consumers without additional surcharge within 10 days.
People who are protesting against these power price-hikes maintain that on one hand there is exorbitant loadshedding in the region while on the other hand the government continues to increase power rates, which is not justifiable by any means and is tantamount to drone attacks on poor masses.
– Translated from the original Pashto by Abdur Rauf Khattak
