Accusing the ruling Congress government in Punjab of not fulfilling its election promise of scrapping or reviewing the Power Purchase Agreements (PPA) with private thermal power plants, which were entered into by the previous SAD-BJP government, Senior Aam Aadmi Party leader and MLA Aman Arora has sought Congress president Sonia Gandhi's intervention in the matter.
Mr. Arora in a letter to Ms. Gandhi has demanded that she should direct Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh to fulfil the election promise and scrap the power agreements.
Mr. Arora said that Punjab Pradesh Congress Party had in its 2017 Vidhan Sabha election manifesto promised that the party upon forming government in the State shall scrap or review the Power Purchase Agreements with 3 private thermal power plants, which were entered into by the previous SAD-BJP regime.
“But nothing in this direction has been done even though the government is about to complete three years in power,” he said.
‘Govt. favouring firms’
In the letter, Mr. Arora said that the AAP has been raising this issue since the formation of the Congress government but instead of acting and safeguarding the interests of the people of the State, the government has chosen to protect the interests of the private companies, resulting in steep electricity tariff hike.
Mr. Arora added that even some Congress leaders have demanded scrapping of the power agreements yet the ruling government is indifferent towards the plight of people.
“I seek your intervention into the matter to prevail upon Chief Minister of Punjab to listen to at least his senior party and government colleagues..,if not us at AAP, to fulfill his manifesto promise by scrapping these power agreements, else the people of the State will scrap agreement of power given to the Congress in 2022,” the AAP leader said in the letter.
