As people are in Maharashtra are facing frequent power cuts and load shedding due to lowered electricity production for a month, a rally of Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut was organized on 21st April 2022 in Nagpur using stolen electricity. It is notable that Nagpur is the hometown of Nitin Raut who happens to be the Power Minister in the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra.
According to a report by Loksatta. load shedding is currently going on at many places in the state due to a gap in availability vis-a-vis the demand for electricity. Citizens are facing a lot of hardships as load shedding is adding to the troubles caused by the heatwave in Maharashtra. While the common public is enraged, it has come to light that Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut’s rally in Nagpur, the hometown of state’s Power Minister Dr. Nitin Raut, was organized on 21st April 2022 using stolen electricity.
On Thursday, 21st April 2022, Dr. Nitin Raut said that the shortage of coal in the state has affected power generation and load shedding is taking place only in areas where there is a high power loss and power theft. He had also claimed that Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL) would take strict action against power theft. Within a few hours of him making this statement, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut’s meeting in the Gajanan Nagar area of Nagpur was organized using stolen electricity.
The electricity required for the speaker and other things along with the illumination of the meeting were taken in a clandestine manner directly from the power channel of the MSEDCL. Therefore, people in Maharashtra are wondering what action will the MSEDCL take against whom in this case in concurrence with the claims made by the power minister Dr. Nitin Raut.
The Nagpur city chief of Shiv Sena, Nitin Tiwari said, “Behind the meeting place was the temple of Gajanan Maharaj. We had taken the power supply from there with the permission of the director there. We have inquired whether the person tasked with the decoration take any halogen lamp connection from the MSEDCL supply lines in the wrong way. We have not committed any power theft.”
The public relations officer of the MSEDCL, Pravin Sthool said, “The concerned officials of the MSEDCL have taken a serious note of the matter and have ordered an immediate inquiry. When the report comes by evening, action will be taken as per rules if anyone is found guilty.”
When asked by the media in this regard, Sanjay Raut said, “I also came to know that electricity had been stolen. We will form a committee within the party and conduct an inquiry.”