DISTRICT CONSUMER DISPUTES REDRESSAL COMMISSION, SUBARNAPUR
C.C. No.3 of 2021
Raghunath Meher, S/o. Niranjan Meher, R/o. village Jagannathpali, P.S. Birmaharajpur, District – Subarnapur
………….. Complainant
Vrs.
1. The Sub-Divisional Officer, Birmaharajpur Electrical Division, At/P.O./P.S. Birmaharajpur, District - Subarnapur
2. The Executive Engineer, Electrical WESCO, SED, Sonepur, At/P.O./P.S. Sonepur, District - Subarnapur
………….. Opp. Parties
Advocate for the Complainant …………. Sri R. Agrawal
Advocate for the O.Ps. …………. Sri B.C.Panigrahi
Present
1. Sri U.N.Purohit, President
2. Sri H.Padhan Member
Date of Filing Dt.22.03.2021
Date of Hearing Dt.24.08.2022
Date of Order Dt.29.08.2022
J U D G E M E N T
By Sri H. Padhan, M.
The complainant Raghunath Meher being the complainant claiming compensation of Rs.95,000/- and stop the O.P. Not to disconnect electricity and charging imposition of penalty. The case of the complainant is that he is a domestic consumer under the O.Ps. availing their services and consuming electricity regularly and paying the electricity bills . On 05.10.2018 while the complainant was absent the vigilance staff of WESCO visited the house to verify electric connection points and meter of the house of the complainant during that period his wife requested to check the same after arrival of her husband, but the vigilance staff of WESCO checking the meter and they found the seal of meter was intact they opened the seal nothing has been wrong or tempering of meter during their checking. After checking the meter and connection they disclosed the meter is not functioning properly and advised her to make complaint for installation of another meter.
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The vigilance staff of WESCO had inspected the house and complainant’s tempering the meter of his house due to such reason penalty of Rs.31,000/- has been imposed.
The complainant strongly protested them and claim the vigilance staff of WESCO found nothing wrong or tempering of meter during their checking. The complainant also requested them to visited of his house of the complainant to ascertained , but the O.Ps. did not listen the grievance of the complainant and threatened to disconnect the electricity if he will not pay the penalty amount. Further the complainant has never given any opportunity to heard supplied provisional assessment bill amounting to Rs.31,000/-. The O.Ps. have been violated provisions of Electricity Act 2003 without following natural justice. The O.Ps. imposed penalty and failed to provide good consumer services to the complainant and due to deficiency of service and unfair trade practice the complainant sustained mental agony, harassment and financial loss.
On the other hand the O.Ps. in their version denying the allegation of the complainant and asserted that on 05.10.2018 under mass checking process in the consumer area the vigilance staff of WESCO alongwith other staff visited the premises of the complainant and found that he was availing power supply through a tempered meter, the all side body of the meter was pasted with gum and body seal was cut. The consumers representative though allow for inspection and testing but refused to sign of verification/ inventory report and receive only copy of the same.
As per inventory made during the inspection the consumers was provisionally assessed to Rs.30,861/- which is served on complainant inviting objection if any within 7 days fixing date of personal appearance on 31.10.2018 but the complainant did not raised any objection and participate in hearing so the
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provisional assessment made final by the assessing officer applying his best of judgments keeping in view of nature of unauthorized use. The copy of final assessment order served to the complainant. The complainant accepted the final assessment order as he not raised any objection or appeal and the final assessment order was passed by the assessing officer.
As the complaint made by the complainant not for deficiency of service but for the unauthorized used of electricity by the complainant, the complaint petition is liable for dismissal.
On this back ground it would be better to decide on following points :-
i). Whether the complainant is a consumer and used electricity without any fault ?
ii). Whether the vigilance staff of WESCO entered the premises of the complainant unauthorisedly tempering the meter to penalize the complainant ?
iii). Whether the act of the O.Ps. are under unfair trade practice or any deficiency of service ?
iv). Whether the complainant will get any compensation ?
All the above points to decide taken together.
The complainant fails to appear inspite of repeated call and this commission decide the complaint on merit on the materials available on record. No evidence adduced by the complainant by way of affidavit only some Xerox copy of documents available on record.
The complainant though alleged the vigilance staff of WESCO unauthorisedly entered in his house and his wife protest the same and claims the vigilance staff of WESCO not finding any fault tempering of meter they open the seal of the meter during their checking and stated to his wife the meter is not functioning proper and advised to complaint for installing of a new meter. The complainant in support of the above claim not filed any evidence or documents however a document of Xerox copy filed by the complainant of dt.05.10.2018 disclosed that the vigilance staff of WESCO inspected his house and stated the
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meter was defective and requested for changing the meter. The inventory report filed by complainant shows that during inspection found that meter all sides body pasted with gum body seal also cut, meter found temper. So the complainant failed to prove the claim of tempering of meter by the O.Ps. while they are inspecting his house.
The documents filed by the O.Ps. in support of their claim the provisional assessment order passed and served to the complainant vide letter No.90/dt.22.10.2018 for tempering of meter U/s.126(3) of Electricity Act and the complaint have not filed objection of the provisional order within the 7 days failing which the assessing officer while passed final order. Further the documents shows final assessment order U/s.126(3) was served to the complainant on 3.11.2018.
The final assessment made by the Assessing Officer basing on his earlier bills from December 2014 to January 2019 with a comparison table. The inventory of vigilance staff of WESCO is refused to receive by the representative of the complainant is also filed by the O.Ps.
So far the complaint of excessive tariff and penalty is concern it is U/s.126(1) of Electricity Act 2003. The O.Ps. has taken action U/s. 126(1) of the Electricity Act. Accordingly the penal bill was prepared and final bill also issued. In similar case Hon’ble Supreme Court and Hon’ble State Commission Odisha relying the decision of S.C. set aside the order of this Commission “In Civil Appeal No.5466 of 2012 U.P. Power Corporation Ltd. And others Vrs. Anish Ahmad reported in A.I.R. 2013 S.C. Page 2766 and in F.A. No.738 of 2007 of the Hon’ble State Commission Odisha in MD WESCO and another Vrs. Dhaniram Meher it is held the consumer complaint is not maintainable under the Electricity Act 2003 in the above provisions U/s.126 of the Act, the complainant is not a consumer and no deficiency of service by the O.Ps.
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O R D E R
In view of above observation by Hon’ble Supreme Court and Hon’ble State Commission the complaint petition is not maintainable. Hence, the complaint petition is dismissed without any cost.
Applications pending, if any, stand disposed of in terms of the aforesaid judgment.
A copy of this judgment be provided to all the parties free of cost as mandated by the Consumer Protection Act, 1986/2019. The judgment be uploaded forthwith on the website of the commission for perusal of the parties.
File be consigned to record room alongwith a copy of this judgment.
Dated the 29th day of August 2022
Typed to my dictation
I agree. and corrected by me.
Sri U.N.Purohit Sri H.Padhan
President Member
Dt.29.08.2022 Dt.29.08.2022
