Complainant Bira Lal has filed the present complaint against the opposite parties U/S 12 of the Consumer Protection Act (for short, C.P.Act.) seeking necessary directions to the opposite parties to  set aside bill dated 8.7.2016, 07.09.2016 and 08.01.2017. Opposite parties be further directed to pay Rs.20,000/- for  physical harassment and mental agony alongwith Rs.10,000/- as litigation expenses, in the interest of justice.

2.        The case of the complainant in brief is that he had applied for domestic electricity connection under SC Category sometimes ago and sanctioned his load as 0.56 KW, similarly as per the policy of PSPCL and Punjab Government, the consumers who belongs to SC Category having less than 1 KW load of premises are granted reduction in the electricity bills. The opposite party allotted him electricity connection bearing Account No.G31KL851370K and he started consuming electricity under abovesaid connection and the opposite party also started to issuing the electricity bills in (-) minus, so no electricity bills were paid by him previously. He has next pleaded that opposite party issued bill dated 8.7.2016,in which illegal demand of Rs.14,240/- was raised by the opposite party and he approached to the office of the opposite party no.2 alongwith previous bills and inquired the matter and the concerned authorized person of the opposite party no.2 made an excuse that official file of his account number had not been found by them and also asked not to pay the abovesaid amount.  Opposite party again issued a bill dated 7.09.2016, in which again illegal demand of Rs.16,490/- was raised by the opposite party and he reached  the office of the opposite party no.2 and requested that he had applied electricity connection under SC Category and he is not liable to pay any amount to the opposite party. Now the opposite party issued a bill dated 08.01.2017 in which again demand of Rs.20,120/- has been raised by the opposite party. The said bill is huge, illegal, null and void and not binding upon him. Thus there is deficiency in service on the part of the opposite parties. Hence this complaint.

3.       Notice of the complaint was issued to the opposite parties who appeared through their counsel and filed their written reply submitting therein that he has applied for electric connection but has not produced any documents for the concession of the electricity. The concession was allowed to the complainant but no record is available in the office of SDO, PSPCL, Dhariwal. On 01.02.2015 the electric connection of the complainant was checked by Sh.Deepak Kumar JE. in the office of PSPCL Dhariwal and it was found on the spot that the load of electricity of the connection of the consumers is 1.146 KW which is beyond the limit of the concession as the PSPCL rules allows concession  upto 1 KW. Notice was issued to them complainant on 16.02.2015 that the complainant has no right to claim concession as he has loaded connection 1.146 KW. The concession of electricity was stopped on 01.02.2015 forthwith to the complainant. The bill issued to the complainant is based on consumption charges and correct one. The bills were issued to the complainant according to the consumption of the electricity meter. All other averments made in the complaint have been vehemently denied and lastly prayed that the complaint may be dismissed with costs.

4.     Counsel for the complainant tendered into evidence affidavit of complainant Ex.C-1, alongwith other documents Ex.C2 to Ex.C27 and closed the evidence. 

5.       Sh.Sukhdev Raj S.D.O. PSPCL tendered into evidence his own affidavit OP1, alongwith other documents Ex.OP2 to Ex.OP-6 and closed the evidence.

6.    We have duly heard the learned counsels for both the sides in the back drop of the legally acceptable statutory merit of the supporting evidence/ document(s) as produced by the litigating parties in order to statutorily resolve the inter-se dispute (under the C P Act’ 1986) prompting the present complaint. We find that the complainant had been the SCC (Scheduled Caste Category) Ex.C27 and BPL (Below Poverty Line) Ex.C3 holder of 0.56 KW Electricity Connection with consumer A/c # G31KL851370K and thus has been entitled to free of cost ‘electricity’ @ 200 units per month and has been throughout receiving ‘zero’ amounted bills. However, the present dispute prompted upon his being in receipt of the repeatedly inflated consumption Bill dated 08.07.2016 for Rs 14,240/- (Ex.C23) followed by the impugned Bill dated 07.09.2016 for Rs 16,490/- (Ex.C24) and finally on 08.01.2017 for   Rs 20,120/- (Ex.C25) with further threats of disconnection of his electricity connection. The complainant has further stated that the present impugned demand was issued sans any pre-notice etc and in spite of his having paid all his previously payable Bills regularly and well in time but the OP Corporation had been adamant not to rectify the impugned Bill and hence the present complaint.       

7.       We further find that the OP Corporation in its written reply and in its Affidavit Ex.OP1 has deposed that the complainant’s record was not available with the OP office and he was issued the impugned Bills comprising the consumption charges only and his electric load was determined Ex.OP2 as: 1.146 KW upon checking and have also produced Ex.OP3 to Ex.OP6 to justify and support its rebuttal pleadings.

8.       We find that the OP Corporation has failed to file the deposition of the checking official and in its absence its allegation of higher than connected KW Load and higher consumption shall amount to bald statements only with no evidentiary value. We also find that the OP Corporation has not put forth any good logic/ reason for having issued the demand on the basis of as and when received from the checking party without having served any pre-notice and having provided any opportunity to the complainant to represent his case. We are certainly not convinced with the clarification as put forth by the OP Corporation to justify its act of having issued the impugned Bills that we are hereby pleased to set-aside. Moreover, the impugned demand as put forth upon the complainant for payment of his consumption Bills for his DS connection by the opposite party corporation/ service providers has been admittedly not a matter of routine and the same has not even been proved to be in accordance with the legally accrued amounts as per its Sales/ Distribution Policy and the Rules & Regulations etc as framed there under. 

9.       In the light of the all above, we partly allow the present complaint and thus ORDER the opposite party corporation to withdraw the impugned Bills (Ex.C23 to Ex.C25) and instead raise the applicable consumption charges on the basis of complainant’s consumer status treating him to be belonging to SC Category etc. besides to pay him Rs.3,000/- as cost and compensation within 30 days of receipt of the copy of these orders. The complainant shall be liable to pay the consumption charges raised as per the settled rules and regulations etc along with completion of all the requisite formalities, if any.

10.      Copy of the orders be communicated to the parties free of charges. After compliance, file be consigned to record.

           (Naveen Puri)

                                                                           President   

Announced:                                                  (Jagdeep Kaur)

December,15 2017                                                           Member

*MK*