Bareilly, Oct. 6 -- In a significant action against electricity theft, the Uttar Pradesh Electricity Department has initiated a recovery process amounting to over Rs.1.28 crore against close aides and relatives of Ittehad-e-Millat Council (IMC) chief Maulana Tauqeer Raza Khan.

Chief Engineer of the Electricity Transmission Division, Gyan Prakash, confirmed that several individuals in Bareilly were booked under Section 135 of the Electricity Act, 2003, for directly stealing power through illegal connections.

Gyan Prakash said, "...On the 30th, I got information about it...We caught seven people in the raid...We have caught a theft of 77 kilowatts (of electricity). An FIR has been registered under the Electricity Act, 2003, and a fine of ...