Mumbai: AIMIM seeks waiver of electricity bills between March-Sept; to protest on July 20

AIMIM leader Waris Pathan and the Mumbai unit of the party on Monday submitted a memorandum to the city's Collector informing that the party has announced a 'silent protest' against the high electricity bills amid the Coronavirus forced lockdown. AIMIM has urged people to switch off all electrical appliances and lights on July 20th at 8 pm for 5 minutes to protest against electricity bills. The party has also urged the Maharashtra government to waive off electricity charges for six months starting from March till September. 

Earlier, several residents of Mumbai complained of 'unreasonably' high electricity bills which created a huge uproar across social media. Following which, Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on June 30, took stock of the increasing complaints about the unexpected hike in the monthly tariff of electricity bills. have an outstanding amount three to ten times their usual electricity bills.

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Taking to Twitter, Thackeray underlined the rising number of consumer complaints related to exorbitant electricity bills, and added that Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC) has directed power companies to show transparency in its billing procedures and redress the consumer complaints immediately.

READ | Ministry Of Power Issues Statement Amid High Electricity Bills, Shares Grievance Helpline

The Ministry of Power also had extended their support to residents of Mumbai after the increasing complaints about the unexpected hike in the monthly tariff in their June 2020 bill.  Through their official Twitter handle on June 30, the RK Singh-led Ministry of Power has issued a statement addressing their grievances and shared a helpline number for the 'faulty bills.

The statement read, "Electricity is a concurrent subject & responsibility of distribution rests with States. Govt. of India facilitates efforts of States to provide power to consumers in an improved manner.Kindly contact State authorities/Discom in case of issues related to faulty bills or dial 1912."

READ | Ministry Of Power Issues Statement Amid High Electricity Bills, Shares Grievance Helpline