Mob attack on grid stations

PTI legislator ought to be ashamed of himself and should immediately apologise for his actions

The brute force and rowdyism that Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa lawmaker Fazal Elahi and his supporters resorted to restore electricity to several neighbourhoods in and around Peshawar on Friday is not as much an act of desperation as it is a grave violation of the law. The legislator — who represents the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) — ought to be ashamed of himself and should immediately apologise for his actions. Not only did he and his 100-odd supporters storm three grid stations, they intimidated Peshawar Electric Supply Company (Pesco) workers and forcibly turned on the electricity of areas affected by prolonged and unannounced power outages. And even though some Peshawar neighbourhoods profited from the mob actions, they would probably do well to reflect on the violent and unlawful methods used to regain their power supply.

It is not clear whether Mr Elahi and his merry men sought any help from utility workers at the Hazarkhawni, Kohat Road Industrial Estate and Taj Abad grid stations but when those workers made out their formal complaint against the MPA they seemed to suggest that power distribution systems were tampered with. It is a good thing that the distribution equipment remained undamaged.

Mr Elahi’s supporters spent four solid hours in the Hazarkhawni grid station. Since they were no doubt making a nuisance of themselves, one wonders why no attempt was made by the utility staff to contact the police. That is not the only mystery: law enforcement agencies failed to spot a mob of 100-plus men on the roads of the provincial capital, let alone confront them.

The danger of such unruly scenes being repeated in other cities and towns is all too real. Power cuts cause unbearable pain in the summer (and other seasons too) but the public must resist the inclination to respond with anger and violence. To fend off the threat of mob action, power utility firms should also do their best to keep households in the loop about any interruption in supply.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 28^th, 2017.

Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.