Coalition partners blow a fuse over power subsidy

The issue of soaring electricity tariffs and the Punjab-only power subsidy have ignited a war of words between the ruling coalition parties, with the PPP criticising the PML-N-led federal and Punjab governments. The opposition has also seized the opportunity to criticise the PML-N, accusing the party of providing relief only to Punjab while neglecting other provinces. The political friction escalated on Friday when PML-N President Nawaz Sharif, alongside his daughter and Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, announced a Rs14 per unit relief for those electricity consumers in Punjab who use between 200 and 500 units per month. Mr Sharif claimed that the relief was funded by a Rs45 billion cut in Punjab’s development budget.