The DMK will oppose the Centre’s decision to privatise power distribution in the Union Territory, Opposition leader R. Siva has said.

“The concerns expressed by the employees on privatisation are genuine. It is not the question of us joining or supporting the indefinite strike called by the employees on February 1, rather it is the question of us opposing a wrong policy of the Union government to privatise a profit-making entity. On Saturday, we are meeting the legal wing of our party at Chennai to explore various options to oppose the move,” Mr. Siva told The Hindu.

The Centre has not given any convincing explanation on the need for privatisation. Even revenue wise or from a distribution perspective, the Electricity Department does not face any major hurdles or issues. The government has not been able to explain to members of the public the benefits of privatising the entity, he said.

“Let the Centre issue a white paper on the benefits that people and the employees will enjoy from the privatisation move. Can the government give an assurance that the power bill will not increase exponentially? The industries are facing great difficulty even now due to heavy tariff,” he said.

The Union Territory administration should take a stand on whether to handover infrastructure worth thousands of crores, built over the years by the department, to a private entity. The department owns around 285 acre of land. Should the government throw away the assets built using public money, he asked.

“The Centre wants to use the Union Territory as an experiment for its larger privatisation plan. The party will oppose the move in all possible manner,” he said.