Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana has taken an aggressive stance after the Thackeray government said that it will not be able to waiver or provide any relaxation in the inflated power bills that consumers received after the lockdown. Electricity consumers in the state will have to pay the full amount as per readings in the bill. The announcement came as a shock to many citizens who were expecting a waiver of electricity bills.
Opposing the state government's decision, Raju Shetti of Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana said, "Energy Minister Nitin Raut used to say over and over again, 'We will do something to help the citizens and will give good news on Diwali. Is this the good news Raut wanted to give that consumers will have to pay the bills? If the ministers in the government make such irresponsible statements, then the belief of the general public in the government and the ministers will be broken. Raju Shetti threatened the state government that he will not pay the electricity bill, we will come down on the streets to protest but won't pay the bills.
"Mahavitaran is also a consumer, it buys electricity from other sources. Currently, the corporation is facing a deficit of Rs 69,000 crore, we cannot avail of further debt at this stage. We tried hard to provide benefits to the consumers but unfortunately, the Centre did not help us," Raut had lamented.
Residents across the state had complained about abnormally high electricity bills, which they received after the lockdown.