The Delhi High Court on Tuesday dismissed a PIL seeking continuation of subsidy on power bills, observing that it was a policy decision and that courts “are not the substitute of the government”. “We are not the substitute of the government. There is a system of separation of power. You cannot ask the courts to legislate and decide policy matters. Likewise governments cannot decide cases,” the bench comprising acting Chief Justice B D Ahmed and Justice Siddharth Mridul said. The court, however, said lawyer Anurag Kejriwal, a member of Lok Satta Party, can make a representation to the office of Lt-Governor. “This is a policy issue. We cannot direct the government to frame policies. You approach the government directly, we are not interfering in policy matters,” the court said. “You have to knock on the doors of your political leaders to ask what they are doing,” it said. The PIL had argued that Delhi residents will face high electricity tariff after March 31 due to the expiry of the government subsidy for consumers using less than 400 units a month. It had asked the court to ensure that underprivileged residents “do not have to bear unsubsidised tariff owing to a paralysis of governance and political posturing during the elections”. “The subsidy provided by the previous governments to ease the burden on the underprivileged and provide lifeline electricity at economic prices is set to expire March 31,” the plea said. At present, consumers are charged a subsidised rate of Rs 2.70 per unit for consuming less than 200 units in a month. The actual cost per unit is Rs 3.90.
