A day after the Dhanbad MLA, Raj Sinha launched a 72-hour long dharna near the district headquarter to protest against the Hemant Soren led state government holding it responsible for the ongoing power crisis, JMM and Congress carried out two separate agitations against the Union government holding it responsible for the stalemate.

JMM leaders led by district president Ramesh Tuddu, who carried out a demonstration near the dharna site of BJP MLA Raj Sinha termed the BJP protest as a nautanki (drama) and said, “We are protesting here against Raj Kumar Singh Union energy minister and Central Government as the DVC which is under the central government is carrying out load shedding leading to the power crisis in the state”

“The BJP leaders on dharna are misleading the common people claiming that DVC is resorting to load shedding due to its pending dues but the fact remains that the central government is deducting money from the bank account of the JBVNL on the pretext of pending dues,“ said Tuddu.

“Instead of drama BJP leaders should join hands with the state government to put pressure on the central government to resolve the crisis,” suggested Tuddu accusing the Centre of destabilising the state.

Meanwhile, Congress leaders led by district working president, Ravindra Verma also staged demonstration at City Centre Chowk around 500 metre away from the dharna site of the BJP MLA and burnt the effigy of Prime Minister, Narendra Modi and Union Energy Minister, Raj Kumar Singh.

Talking to media, Verma said “More than 15 hours of load shedding is being carried out of DVC as the insistence of central government with the aim of destabilizing the state”

BJP supporters led by Dhanbad MLA Raj Sinha on the second day of the protest Gautam Dey

“We demand the central government and DVC to issue a white paper regarding the dues pending over the state during the previous Raghubar Das led BJP government of the state and present government led by Hemant Soren and at same time to reveal how much pending dues are lying of DVC of other states” said Verma and claimed that while DVC dues worth Rs 5300 were lying with the state government during Raghubar Das era only around Rs 2173 crore is pending as state government paid the dues even during the pandemic.

Raj Sinha on other hand, defended the dharna and said, “They claim I am indulging in drama but if taking up a problem faced by the common people is drama is as per their opinion, they are making mockery of common people.”