CHARSADDA: A large number of people affiliated with various political parties staged a demonstration here on Tuesday to protest the excessive power outages in the district.

The enraged protesters, affiliated with ANP, QWP, PTI, JI and JUI-F, blocked the main Peshawar-Charsadda Road for five hours in the scorching heat, creating problems to the commuters and motorists.

They were led by local political leaders including Mufti Gohar Ali Shah, Humayoun Khan Khattak, Sadiqullah, Arif Paracha, Iqbal Masih and Saeedul Haq.

Holding banners and placards, the protesters chanted slogans against Peshawar Electric Supply Company and federal government for observing prolonged power loadshedding in the area.

The protesters said that there was no issue of monthly payment of the electricity bills as all consumers were paying to Pesco without any delay. Despite that, they said, Pesco was observing 14-hour power loadshedding in the district. “It has no justification,” they added.

The protesters said that prolonged power outages had brought business activities to a standstill in the area. “It has also very negative impact on the education as students are attending classes in the absence of electricity,” they added. The protesters ended the protest when police and Pesco officials assured them that duration of the power loadshedding would be reduced. However, the protestors said that they would set up a protest camp at Tangi turn till solution of the issue.

ARREST: Charsadda police on Tuesday arrested 10 proclaimed offenders and six suspected persons and recovered arms from their possession.

On the direction of DPO Sohail Khalid, SHO of Tarnab police station Irfan Khan raided the hideouts of the criminals. Police recovered four pistols from the possession of the arrested persons during the raid.

Published in Dawn, May 11th, 2016