They have also roped in neighbours and sympathisers, hoping to make it a movement against Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL). But, the MTNL insists that this time, they are not to blame.

Residents of DDA Flats in Kalkaji, Rajesh and Rakesh Dogra's battle against MTNL began in December last year. Rakesh, the more vocal of the two, says, ``We have two phones, or rather had two phones. While one was registered as a PCO, the other was registered in our father's name. We used the PCO for making calls and the other one was just for receiving calls and so we would get a bill of just Rs 380, which is the rent. However, since November '98 the bills started getting higher. We tried telling these people that this can't happen, but they didn'tlisten.''

The brothers allege the MTNL officials asked for a bribe, but they refused to pay and that is what complicated the issue. ``So while we were fighting, they disconnected the phone. But the bills did not stop coming. And now even the other phone has stopped ringing. We get the bill, but someone else is using the phone. We have met virtually every official in the MTNL office at Nehru Place but they refuse to listen,'' says Rakesh. He flips through pages of a thick file of letters while he talks. The letters were written to almost every official and elected representative of their area.

At this point, residents who have been milling around, reading the posters and banners, also join in. Everyone has something to say about MTNL and they vie with each other to be heard.

Sushil Kumar, a resident of J block in Kalkaji flats, manages to out-voice the others. ``My phone was disconnected because of non-payment. I went and explained to them that my wife was very serious and they should restore theconnection as soon as possible. They didn't do anything. My wife died. But, of course, why should MTNL have any sympathy for anyone? Anyway, finally I paid all the dues. In fact, I have paid rent in advance for the next few months but now they say I will get a new connection. Since then a couple of months have passed and now they say that this area is technically non-feasible and no one is sure, when, if ever, I will get a telephone connection,'' he says. After he ends his story, the Dogra brothers complete theirs. Disappointed with the official response, they approached the Lok Adalat in August. After two hearings, they gave up on that too and tried self-immolation.

``On September 13, we tried to immolate ourselves outside the Nehru Place office. However, the police arrested us and so we were unsuccessful. As a last resort, we have decided to go on an indefinite hunger strike, till someone listens to us,'' says Rajesh.

J S Chhabra, General Manager (south) says: ``An inquiry was conducted by the vigilancedepartment and it was found that they had taken a parallel line from their father's phone and were using it without their knowledge. We even checked up at that number and they confirmed that they used to receive calls from the duo. We had submitted our report in the Lok Adalat and they were found at fault. The case was `regretted', which means that there can't even be an appeal against it. Unless, they pay their dues, the phone will not be activated.''