Congress on Tuesday said Punjab was experiencing "acute" power shortage and the party will hold state-wide protests against it as "tall claims" made by the SAD-BJP government regarding "adequate power" has fallen flat.
Punjab Congress chief Pratap Singh Bajwa and Congress general secretary Shakeel Ahmed addressed a press conference here in this regard after holding a meeting of Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee.
Bajwa said the party will hold demonstrations at all the district headquarters on July 23 to expose the claims of the ruling combine.
With monsoon remaining below-normal level, Punjab has received scanty rains between June 1 to July 12 this year and the demand for power has grown manifold. Punjab State Power Corporation Limited has announced that it will resort to load shedding for all categories of consumers, including farmers and domestic users.
Bajwa said, "the tall claims of Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal about adequate availability of power and the state close to becoming a power surplus stand exposed with Punjab experiencing acute power shortage."
"We will hold protests outside the Deputy Commissioner offices at all the district headquarters. People need to know the real face of this government which has been making false promises," Bajwa said.
"All sections including industry, agriculture and domestic consumers are suffering from long power cuts," he said.
Meanwhile, Ahmed, who is also party's in-charge of Punjab affairs, ruled out changes in the state party unit or in the Legislature Party leadership. "There is no proposal for a change under consideration, both at PCC and CLP level in Punjab," Ahmed said.
He was replying to a question about comments of some state Congress MLAs, loyal to former chief minister Amarinder Singh, seeking a change in the leadership at state-level after the party performed below expectations in the recently held Lok Sabha polls.
Ahmed said some leaders (who had sought changes) have been issued notices and some have responded and the matter has been forwarded to the party's disciplinary committee. When asked to comment on the report of Shandil Committee on poll losses, Ahmed said, "I received the report on Monday evening and I am yet to go through it."
"The detailed report has been submitted (to the party high command). Let me first go through it and only then I can comment," he said.
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