Sponsored Links
Court questions Delhi power firms on audit of accounts
New Delhi, The Delhi High Court Wednesday asked the capital’s private power distribution companies (discoms) BSES Rajdhani, BSES Yamuna and NDPL to respond to a petition that the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) should be directed to audit their accounts.
The division bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justice Sanjiv Khanna issued the notices to the discoms and asked them to file their affidavits within six weeks.
Petitioner United RWAs Joint Action (URJA) alleged that the Delhi government had come under the discoms’ pressure and intervened in the functioning of the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC).
“Are the discoms amenable to be audited by the CAG?” asked the bench, seeking the power distribution companies’ response.
Appearing for the discoms, senior counsel Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Sandeep Sethi said that after the privatisation of the power distribution the companies’ accounts could not be audited by the CAG.
Petitioner’s counsel Pyoli Swatija opposed them, arguing that even after privatisation, the city government held 49 percent stake in the companies. It could not be said that they were out of the CAG’s purview.
The DERC filed an affidavit and informed the court that it did not examine the accounts of the discoms while fixing the power tariff every fiscal year.
The petition said that under the pressure of discoms, the state government intervened in the functioning of the DERC which failed to fix the tariff for the year 2011-12.
The petitioner also sought a Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the case.
Sponsored Links
DISCOMS must come under CAG mainly for two reasons according to me besides the other points you have taken in the petition:
1. Delhi Govt has a holding of 49% stake in DISCOMS.
2. DISCOMS are using the state Govt. Powers which are given to Govt. offices/officials as, DISCOMS officials can enter anybody’s house without any notice/or information for checking electricity irregularity under suspicion. This power is not available to any private agencies staff to enter any body’s house without any leagle notice eg any misuse of telephone services provided by private telephone operators,or any private bank employee cannot enter anyone;s house(loan defaulters house) for recovery of their arrears. All such companys have to take leagle course of action for their checking/recovery against the house or individual. THIS TYPE OF POWER OF ENTERING ANY HOUSE WITHOUT NOTICE IS ONLY WITH GOVT.
Now if the DISCOMS say that they are private companys then they can’t use Govt. powers to enter any premises without any leagle notice.
This is just what came in my mind after going through the newspaper about the PIL filed in High Court about this case.
I feel this point can also be included in the arguments.
I am also a President of one of the RWA (society) and understand the services being provided by pvt DISCOMS especialy BSES.