The electricity lineman was on his scooter when he was stopped for not wearing a mask in public. The lineman protested against the fine and told the cops that he is on official duty. However, due to the severity of the COVID-19 and to stop the spread, it is now mandatory to wear a mask when going out of the home in many cities in India. The lineman was not wearing a mask and he was issued a fine of Rs 500 on the spot.

The lineman then came back to the police station after a day and accused the officials of stealing electricity. The electricity department issued a fine of Rs 3 lakh and also seized a lot of Air Conditioners and conventional heaters from the police station. The electricity department thoroughly checked the transformer and found out that the electricity was being bypassed from the main meter to run the high energy consumption devices like AC and heaters. The lineman also cut off the illegal line to the police station.

The electricity department says that the order to check the police stations came from the higher officers. The order was to check all the police stations in the vicinity for any irregularities. The department also says that the cops issued a fine when it was their fault and now they have done the same to the cops for not following the rules and doing illegal activities. The electricity board officer also denied that these steps were taken because of revenge.

It is not known how many days have been given to the police station to submit the fine. Also, the electricity department has not said anything about further action if the cops do not pay the fine. Since both the authorities belong to the government, it should be solved peacefully in the coming days.

Masks are now mandatory for going out of the home in most cities in India. The cops even check the passengers of a car for masks and issue on-spot challans if they find anyone without a mask. Wearing a mask drastically reduces the chances of transmission of the COVID-19.