A poverty-stricken vegetable vendor in Punjab’s Bahawalnagar tragically took his own life after receiving an unaffordable electricity bill, police reported on Saturday.
The heart-wrenching incident occurred in Tehsil Chishtian, where the victim’s father revealed that his son had resorted to suicide after being unable to pay a staggering electricity bill of Rs17,000.
The vendor ended his life by ingesting poisonous pills, overwhelmed by the financial burden. Despite the tragic circumstances, the victim’s father declined to pursue any legal action against the government or the electricity supply department.
This incident is part of a troubling pattern in Pakistan, where inflated electricity bills have led to a series of tragic events.
On July 23, a man in Gujranwala killed his younger brother following a dispute over an inflated electricity bill. Later, on July 29, an elderly woman in Gujranwala committed suicide after receiving a bill of Rs10,000, which she paid using her life savings intended for a critical surgery.
In another case, a financially distressed man in Dhok Sadu, Taxila, took his own life on August 1, driven to despair by an unpayable electricity bill.
These tragedies highlight the growing strain on citizens due to rising electricity costs. The coalition government, led by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, has recently increased power tariffs to Rs48.84 per unit for domestic consumers, as part of the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) conditions. This hike has resulted in inflated bills, further burdening those already struggling with inflation.
