Sub-divisional officer Santosh Tripathi (SDO) announced that the Uttar Pradesh Electricity Department, with police support, has demolished illegal encroachments in Sambhal.
Some residents had made such encroachments that “the electricity pole was inside their house,” Tripathi stated.
“A few are involved in electricity theft without having a connection and proper meter. There was an older mechanical meter inside, that is being taken out. Action is being taken to remove the encroachment,” Tripathi said during the operation involving bulldozers.
Tripathi also highlighted that mechanical meters, discontinued 15 years ago, were still found in some locations. “As far as I know, there were orders 15 years ago that mechanical meters will not be installed anymore. The few older meters that were not detected before, like the one seen, will be taken out too,” he added.
While inspecting the site, the SDO revealed that around 2-3 houses had been caught stealing electricity, with the total number to be determined following further investigation.
In a separate incident, Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi visited victims of recent violence in Sambhal. On Monday, they met the affected families at the residence of party leader Sonia Gandhi.
“Today, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and Congress General Secretary and MP Priyanka Gandhi met the victims of Sambhal. The incident in Sambhal is the ill-effects of BJP’s hate politics, and it is fatal for a peaceful society,” Congress stated in a post on X.
“Together we have to defeat this violent and hateful mentality with love and brotherhood. We stand with all the victims and will fight to get them justice,” the post further said.
The violence in Sambhal erupted on November 24 during an Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) examination of a Mughal-era mosque, leading to four fatalities and multiple injuries among police personnel and locals.