Order by:
Sh.Amrinder Singh Sidhu, President
1. The complainant has filed the instant complaint under section 12 of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 (as amended upto date) on the allegations that an electric connection bearing account No.LS-16 of 175 HP has been installed in the Rice Mill of the complainant and the complainant is regularly paying the electricity bills to the Opposite Parties and never remained defaulter in payment of electricity bills. The complainant further alleges that on 03.05.2018 the officials of the Opposite Parties i.e. Enforcement Department of Opposite Parties visited the premises i.e. Rice Mill of the complainant and inspected the electric connection and at that time, all the seals of the meter were completely intact and meter was also locked in the box. At the time of checking of the said meter, the officials of the Opposite Parties had broken the seal of the meter and the enforcement staff had leveled allegations on the complainant that the said electric meter connection is running slow upto 25% mentioning reason that internal wiring of the said electric meter were affixed on different sides in the meter and due to that reason the meter is running slowly, but the complainant has no knowledge about the affixing of the wiring in the meter as the officials of the Opposite Parties themselves installed the meter and affixed the wiring in the meter and thereafter made seal in the meter and after that the said electric meter had locked by the officials of the Opposite Parties. If the meter is running slow it is completely fault of the officials of the Opposite Parties and not the complainant. In this regard, the Opposite Parties issued demand of Rs.4,89,385/- vide memo No. 989 dated 15.05.2018 upon the complainant which is totally illegal, against the law and rules and the complainant is not liable to pay the same. Repeated requests have been made by the complainant to the opposite parties to withdraw the illegal demand and not to indulge the complainant into any litigation, but opposite parties refused to admit the rightful claim of the complainant. Due to the aforesaid act and conduct and deficiency in service on the part of the opposite parties, the complainant has suffered mental tension, harassment and financial loss. Vide instant complaint, the complainant has sought the following reliefs.
- To set aside and quash the illegal demand of opposite parties of Rs.4,89,385/ raised vide memo No.989 dated 15.05.2018 on the basis of slowness of the meter.
- Further opposite parties may also be directed to pay Rs.50,000/- to the complainant on account of compensation for causing mental tension and harassment and Rs.11,000/- as costs of complaint.
- And any other relief may kindly be granted as this Commission may deem fit and proper.
Hence, this complaint.
2. Upon notice, opposite parties appeared through counsel and contested the complaint by filing written reply taking certain preliminary objections therein inter alia that the complaint is not maintainable; that the complainant has got no jurisdiction to try and decide the present complaint. Actual facts are that on 03.05.2018 Sh.Deepinder Singh Grewal, Senior XEN Enforcement, PSPCL alongwith other officials checked the electric connection in dispute vide ECR No.28/2047 the accuracy of the meter was checked with ERS meter at the load of 6 KW and it was found that the meter was running slow by 25%, than the actual consumption. The internal system of the meter was checked and neutral wire wrongly connected and said wires were correctly affixed at proper place and then the accuracy of the meter was checked and it was found within the prescribed limit. Accordingly, the account of the complainant was overhauled as per the rules. The checking was conducted in the presence of Chamkaur Singh, representative of the complainant firm. Thereafter, the account of the complainant was overhauled for the period 16.10.2017 to 03.05.2018 and a sum of Rs.4,89,385/- was raised vide notice No. 989 dated 15.05.2018, to which the Opposite Parties are legally entitled to, but the complainant did not pay the said amount. The demand of the Opposite Parties is legal one and in accordance with rules and regulations of the Opposite Party-Corporation. All other allegations made in the complaint have been denied and a prayer for dismissal of the complaint with special costs has been made.
3. In order to prove his case, the complainant has tendered into evidence his affidavit Ex.CW1/A alongwith copies of documents Ex.C1 to Ex.C12 and closed his evidence.
4. On the other hand, the Opposite Parties have tendered into evidence the affidavit of Sh.Varinder Singh SDO Ex.OPs1, copies of documents Ex.OPs2 to Ex.OPs4 and closed the evidence on behalf of the Opposite Parties.
5. We have heard ld.counsel for the parties and perused the written arguments filed by the complainant and have carefully gone through the evidence on record.
6. From the appraisal of the evidence on record, it becomes evident that an electric connection bearing account No.LS-16 of 175 HP has been installed in the Rice Mill of the complainant and the complainant is regularly paying the electricity bills to the Opposite Parties and never remained defaulter in payment of electricity bills. Ld.counsel for the complainant contended that that on 03.05.2018 the officials of the Opposite Parties i.e. Enforcement Department of Opposite Parties visited the premises i.e. Rice Mill of the complainant and inspected the electric connection and at that time, all the seals of the meter were completely intact and meter was also locked in the box. At the time of checking of the said meter, the officials of the Opposite Parties had broken the seal of the meter and the enforcement staff had leveled allegations on the complainant that the said electric meter connection is running slow upto 25% mentioning reason that internal wiring of the said electric meter were affixed on different sides in the meter and due to that reason the meter is running slowly, but the complainant has no knowledge about the affixing of the wiring in the meter as the officials of the Opposite Parties themselves installed the meter and affixed the wiring in the meter and thereafter made seal in the meter and after that the said electric meter had locked by the officials of the Opposite Parties. It is further contended that if the meter was running slow it is completely fault of the officials of the Opposite Parties and not the complainant and the Opposite Parties issued demand of Rs.4,89,385/- vide memo No. 989 dated 15.05.2018 upon the complainant which is totally illegal, against the law and rules and the complainant is not liable to pay the same.
7. On the other hand, ld.counsel for the Opposite Parties has repelled the aforesaid contention of the ld.counsel for the complainant on the ground that on 03.05.2018 Sh.Deepinder Singh Grewal, Senior XEN Enforcement, PSPCL alongwith other officials checked the electric connection in dispute vide ECR No.28/2047 the accuracy of the meter was checked with ERS meter at the load of 6 KW and it was found that the meter was running slow by 25%, than the actual consumption. The internal system of the meter was checked and neutral wire wrongly connected and said wires were correctly affixed at proper place and then the accuracy of the meter was checked and it was found within the prescribed limit. Accordingly, the account of the complainant was overhauled as per the rules. The checking was conducted in the presence of Chamkaur Singh, representative of the complainant firm. Thereafter, the account of the complainant was overhauled for the period 16.10.2017 to 03.05.2018 and a sum of Rs.4,89,385/- was raised vide notice No. 989 dated 15.05.2018, to which the Opposite Parties are legally entitled to, but the complainant did not pay the said amount. It is further contended that the demand of the Opposite Parties is legal one and in accordance with rules and regulations of the Opposite Party-Corporation.
8. Perusal of the checking report Ex.OP2 shows that the premises i.e. rice mill of the complainant was duly checked on 03.05.2018 by Sh.Deepinder Singh Grewal, Senior XEN Enforcement, PSPCL alongwith other officials vide ECR No.28/2047 the accuracy of the meter was checked with ERS meter at the load of 6 KW and it was found that the meter was running slow by 25%, than the actual consumption. The checking was conducted in the presence of Chamkaur Singh, representative of the complainant firm who by admitting the correctness of the checking has signed the same and it was found that in the internal system of the meter, the neutral wire was wrongly connected and said wires were correctly affixed at proper place and then the accuracy of the meter was checked and it was found within the prescribed limit. Accordingly, the account of the complainant was overhauled as per the rules. Thereafter, the account of the complainant was overhauled for the period 16.10.2017 to 03.05.2018 and a sum of Rs.4,89,385/- was raised vide notice No. 989 dated 15.05.2018. The aforesaid averments of the Opposite Parties has nowhere denied by the complainant by producing any cogent and convincing iota of evidence on record. The contention of ld. Counsel for the complainant was only to the extent that if the meter was running slow it is completely fault of the officials of the Opposite Parties and not the complainant, but however, the complainant has nowhere denied the checking in question by the Enforcement Staff of the Opposite Parties. Moreover, it is settled law that the mistake can be rectified when it has come to the notice of the authority.
9. Now come to the actual facts regarding date of meter seal which was produced by the ld.counsel for the Opposite Parties during the course of arguments. But however, as per the notice Ex.C3, the account of the complainant has been overhauled by taking the actual consumption for the period 16.10.2017 to 18.05.2018 , but perusal of the Meter Seal Record, that the MCB, MTC, CT chamber seals which were broken by Enforcement Staff on 03.05.2018 for setting right the connection was actually fixed on 16.11.2017 as per Sealing record produced by the Opposite Parties during the course of augments. In this way, the meter remained slow by 25% from 16.11.2017 to 03.05.2018. Hence, the account of the consumer should be overhauled for the period w.e.f.16.11.2017 to 03.05.2018 and not from 16.10.2017.
10. In view of the aforesaid facts and circumstances of the case, the complaint of the complainant is partly allowed. The impugned demand of Rs.4,89,385/- raised vide memo No. 989 dated 15.05.2018 from the complainant is set aside. However, the Opposite Parties are at liberty to overhaul the account of the complainant by taking the actual consumption average for the period 16.11.2017 to 03.05.2018 and not from 16.10.2017 to 03.05.2018. Keeping in view the peculiar circumstances of the case, the parties are left to bear their own costs. Copies of the order be furnished to the parties free of costs. File is ordered to be consigned to the record room.
11. Reason for delay in deciding the complaint.
This complaint could not be decided within the prescribed period because the government has not appointed any of the Whole Time Members in this Commission for about 3 years i.e. w.e.f. 15.09.2018 till 27.08.2021 as well as the situation arising due to outbreak of the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19).
Announced in Open Commission.
