Two injured as protests against loadshedding turn violent in Kohat

KOHAT: Two persons were injured when peaceful protest against loadshedding turned violent after unidentified miscreants opened fire and pelted stones at the police at University Road here on Monday.

In retaliation, the police also fired shots in the air to disperse the protesters. Two people sustained wounds as the protesters ran amok.

Later, the police arrested 20 protesters including two women and shifted them to Saddar Police Station.

Batkhela: Hundreds of people took to roads in protest against hours-long loadshedding and low voltage of electricity and blocked the main road for traffic for four hours.

The protesters chanted slogans against government representatives including district administration and Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) officials.

The protesters from Khar, Dheri Jolgram, Matkani, Alladhand Dheri, Totakan, Mekhband and Peerkhel areas complained of 20 hours daily power outages in their respective areas.

The enraged protesters were led by Awami National Party local leader, Sher Shah, district councillor Maulana Arshad Noorani and village councillors including Ameer Akbar, Fazal Nabi, Maulana Javed and Khalid Hussain. Extending a five day deadline to the authorities concerned, the protesters demanded to ensure uninterrupted power supply to the affected areas.

They condemned the Pakistan Teheek-e-Insaf led provincial government for deceiving the people in the name of change.

Bisham: In Shangla district, the councillors belonging to seven union councils threatened to stop cooperation with members of National Assembly in their respective constituencies if the elected representatives failed to take up the issue of establishing 132kv grid station in Bisham.

They lashed out at Ameer Muqam, the adviser to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, for turning a deaf ear to the woes of local residents.

They lamented that work on the grid station has been incomplete for the last three years.

The enraged local government representatives also warned the Wapda authorities of dire consequences if unannounced power outages were not stopped in the district.