Amid tussle over power subsidy, Delhi govt to order discom audit

The order to conduct the audit will be sent to the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) in a couple of days by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Atishi said. “A conspiracy is being hatched at a high level to stop free electricity being provided by the Kejriwal government. Files are not being shown to the CM and the Power Minister… It shows that something is amiss,” she claimed.

Officials said L-G V K Saxena had asked the Chief Secretary to place the “statutory” advice of the DERC, which says that power subsidy should be given to only those who have a sanctioned load up to 5 kilowatt, before the Council of Ministers for a final decision.

Atishi said Monday that the file is yet to be placed before either her or Kejriwal. “If there is no wrongdoing, why is the file being hidden from the elected representatives? The L-G has removed the experts that Delhi government appointed to the discom boards. Why were they removed… under the audit, the accounts related to subsidies given over the past eight years will be audited,” she said, adding that the AAP-led government would not allow the power subsidy to be discontinued.

The Delhi BJP, meanwhile, said it has been asking the AAP government to pay subsidies directly to people instead of discoms. “Today, when the L-G has started raising questions, the government is talking about an audit,” said spokes-person Praveen Shankar Kapoor.