UPA behaviour autocratic: Shobha

HUBLI: Energy Minister Shobha Karandlaje hit out at the Congress-led UPA government for the 'mishandling' of anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare’s issue, saying that the arrest of Hazare on the advice of the Central ministers was a blunder on the part of the Delhi police.Speaking to reporters at the Hubli airport on Friday, the minister said that the recent action of the Congress leaders reminded us of the dark days of the Emergency.She termed the Centre's behaviour "totally autocratic" and said that it was nothing less than an attempt to muzzle the voice raised against corruption and a strong Lokpal Bill. The BJP state government is also in favour of a comprehensive Lokpal Bill that can help curb corruption across the country, so the party is behind Hazare's agitation.His arrest was totally undemocratic and the people have shown their anger over the act by coming on to the streets, she said.Conceding that the state is still facing scarcity of power, Shobha said that she had also several complaints regarding improper and poor electricity supply in North Karnataka region. Absence of adequate infrastructure and fall in power generation were adding to the woes.She has been striving to provide power supply to rural areas, particularly more to house with three-phase electricity. The central government has also made arrangements to purchase power so that no section of the society could be hit by the scarcity, she added.Shobha refused comment on the third phase of the Cabinet expansion. Earlier, she was accorded a traditional way of welcome at the Hubli airport by the BJP workers