Two more courts set up to expedite electricity disputes

Earlier, similar courts were established by the board at the advice of the High Court and the experiment turned out to be a successful one with a number of disputes being solved at this forum itself.

Nath informed the judge that two courts each would be set up at two different places in the capital to reduce the rush of such disputes to the judiciary.

Justice Singh directed the High Court’s registrar to inspect the new court premises and submit his report on the next date of hearing on October 8. The proposal to set up such courts was mooted by former judge of the High Court justice Jaspal Singh in view of the hundreds of litigations pending on such matters in the lower courts and the high court.

The direction had come during the hearing of a petition filed by the non-governmental organisation Common Cause through its president H D Shourie seeking action against those involved in power theft in the Capital.

Justice Jaspal Singh had said that the idea behind the formation of such courts was to ensure that an honest consumer does not have to run around the courts for redressal of his grievance regarding electricity bills.

Shourie had alleged that the shortage of power in the capital was due to the presence of a large number of illegal power connections to unauthorised colonies, which, the petitioner claimed, was done in active connivance among local police, politicians and DVB officials.

He claimed that the politicians were using consumers residing in the various J J clusters as their vote-banks and were preventing any action against them for power theft.