LARKANA: The Larkana circuit bench of the Sindh High Court on Friday ordered Sukkur Electric Power Company to create a mechanism within a month to ensure that regular bill-paying consumers are not penalised for electricity theft committed by others in their locality.

A division bench comprising Justices Muhammad Saleem Jessar and Adnan ul Karim Memon passed the order while hearing a constitutional petition (No.D-205 2018) filed by late advocate Sarfaraz Khan Jatoi, regarding unannounced electricity load shedding.

The bench said that a system was required that distinguished between compliant and non-compliant customers, along with strict disciplinary action against Sepco staff involved in abetting theft.

The petitioner requested thatSepco Larkana`s superintendent of operation be stopped from continuing unauthorised loadshedding in Larkana division. `Provide a schedule of loadshedding and technical failure details since January, 2018.

Ensure uninterrupted electricity supply to Larkana division,` said the order.

He demanded scheduled power outages, explanations for failures and consistent electricity, submitting court intervention as the only solution. Though the petitioner passed away tragically before the court could reach a final decision, the significance of the issue for generalpublienecessitateditscontinued hearing, said the bench.

The respondents challenge to the legitimacy of the petition was without merit, said the order. When power outages severely impacted a large segment of society, disrupting their lives and business, legal action was justified, it said.It said that Sepco was obligated to create a mechanism within one month to ensure that regular billpaying consumers were not penalised for electricity theft committed by others in their locality. It required a system that distinguished between compliant and non-compliant customers ..., said the order.

It said that Sepco must stop penalising regular bill-paying consumers for others` theft or defaults. The CEO, Larkana operations superintendent, and all Larkana subdivision officers were ordered to ensure uninterrupted electricity, and strictly enforce action against electricity thieves and defaulters, it said.

`Let a copy of this order be transmitted to the CEO, Sepco Sukkur, Superintending Engineer Larkana, and all Larkana subdivision officers for compliance. In case of failure, the matter shall be taken up in terms of Article 204 of the Constitution, said the order.