ISLAMABAD - The federal government has decided to establish anti-power thefts unit in the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) headed by chief of the agency’s Special Investigation Unit (SIU), Hussain Asghar, to launch a crackdown against electricity theft.
The federal government announced this here on Friday while Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif also held a meeting with Hussain Asghar in this connection, official sources said on Friday.
The PM has directed Asghar to start probe against those officials of WAPDA and other power distribution companies who were involved in the cases of power theft and proceedings should start against them under the law. He strictly conveyed to FIA that such people would be dealt with strictly and his directions should be acted upon in letter and spirit.
Earlier, the previous PPP-led federal government had given such kind of task to National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to recover the outstanding amount payable by the electricity consumers. NAB had started the campaign but it failed to get any fruitful results and recovered a very minimal amount out of the total outstanding amount. Former interior minister Rehman Malik, during a Cabinet meeting, had once offered the services of FIA to launch crackdown against power thefts but the government had refused his proposal.
Meanwhile: taking strict notice of the shifting out of people at mass level from Layari due to unrest and unabated incidents of target killings, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has directed Secretary Interior and Director General Intelligence Bureau to rush to Karachi to gauge the gravity of the situation and let him know about the factual position.
Sources in the government confirmed to The Nation that Prime Minister directed both these officials to reach their immediately and after taking input from Sindh Government and other law enforcement agencies give him feedback.
The Prime Minister expressed his resolve that Federal Government would extend all out help to provincial government in maintenance of law and order situation in the restive port city of the country, which is also the financial nerve centre.
Sources in the government further said that after having input on the precarious law and order situation in the province PML-N led government would evolve a comprehensive strategy to bring peace to the restive financial hub of the country in consultation with the provincial government.