Even as chief minister Sheila Dikshit on Friday attributed increase in power tariffs to uninterrupted 24-hour power supply in the city, several eminent personalities extended their support to Kejriwal’s disobedience movement against the ‘inflated’ electricity bills.

Former chief election commissioner J M Lyngdoh, ex-Naval chief Admiral Ramdas, Justice V R Krishna Iyer and former National Knowledge Commission vice chairman P M Bhargava are among the supporters.

Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal is on an indefinite fast against ‘inflated’ power bills for the last seven days.

AAP on Friday released the joint letter sent by the eminent personalities in which they have urged the Delhi government to take note of irregularities highlighted by Kejriwal and initiate urgent corrective action.

“The citizens of Delhi, most of who struggle to make their two ends meet and simply cannot afford the hiked bills, seek to exercise their right to disobey. They seek to do so in a non-violent manner,” the letter says.

“They are willing to face the consequences, including punitive action. In these circumstances, we extend our support to this call for civil disobedience,” the letter adds.

They claimed that the activist-turned-politician called for the disobedience movement when all the pleas to stop corruption ‘fell on deaf ears’.

“Arvind Kejriwal has called for civil disobedience by asking Delhi people to refuse to pay the unjust portion of their water and electricity bills till CAG audits are instituted, in both water and electricity distribution, and the tariffs are brought down to reasonable levels,” the letter reads.

“Gandhiji had said when the laws and the rules are highly unjust and oppressive then it is not only the right but the duty of the citizens to refuse to obey them,” the letter states.

Meanwhile, the AAP claimed that over one lakh people on Thursday pledged not to pay the inflated bills, taking the total number of people who have refused to pay bills to 3,75,040.

Kejriwal also challenged Dikshit for an open debate on her claim that the power bills have risen as the city residents are now availing power supply for 24 hours a day.
Addressing the crowd in Sunder Nagri on Friday, he said, “Prices of power and water in Delhi had gone up many times because of corruption in the Sheila Dikshit government. I challenge her for an open debate anywhere anytime in front of people,” he said.

“On the basis of documents, I will prove that her claims are false and misleading. Massive corruption of her government is the root cause of inflated bills,” he added.