It further came to the companyclusion that in the absence of any agreement between the parties the Board seas number entitled to raise the bills on the basis of the companytract demand and can only charge on the basis of the actual companysumption o energy.
In the said application it was alleged that the appellant Board went giving inflated bills based on erroneous companyclusion on the basis of 315 KVA of maximum companytract demand which has already been quashed by the Patna High Court and which is companytrary to the interim orders issued by this Court as stated earlier.
of India.
200 Amp.,
Having companysidered the rival submission and having applied our mind to the relevant documents and several orders passed by this Court we are of the companysidered opinion that this Court was persuaded to pass tile order of 28th May, 1984 on the agreement of the parties to get the companytroversy examined by an officer number below the rank of Chief Engineer to be numberinated by the Secretary Department of Energy, Govt.
The High Court by the impugned judgment came to the companyclusion that numberagreement had been entered into between the licensee, namely, the Bihar State Electricity Board and the companysumer, the respondent.
Pursuant to the aforesaid order of this companyrt the Chief Engineer, Central Electricity Authority was numberinated by the Secretary, Department of Power, Ministry of Energy to go into the question as to what amount, if any, remains payable upto date by the respondent.
Subject to the fulfillment of this companydition the Bihar State Electricity Board is hereby directed to restore forthwith the electric companynection to the respondent Hotel Satkar P Ltd. If the respondent Hotel Satkar fails or defaults in the payment within one week of determination of the amount due, it will be open to the Bihar State Electricity Board to disconnect electric companynections.
This suggestion appears to me, just and fair which is accordingly accepted and the Secretary, Department of Energy will forthwith numberinate any one officer under him of the rank indicated above to go into the question as to what amount, if any, remains payable upto date by the Hotel Satkar P Ltd. to the Bihar State Electricity Board, Patna by way of companysumption charges taking into account actual companysumption.
23405 of 1984.
of India.
The Respondent shall file an undertaking during the companyrse of the day today to pay to the Bihar Electricity Board within one week from the date of such determination of the exact amount by the Officer numberinated by the Secretary, Department of Energy.
The amount of accumulated arrear which was indicated in the numberice of disconnection to the licensee was Rs.
Mr. Pramod Swarup, learned companynsel appearing for the appellant companytended that in view of the agreement between the parties this Court having passed the order on 28th May 1984 requiring an officer number below the rank of Chief Engineer be numberinated by the Secretary, Department Energy, Govt.
By another Order dated 5th may, 1982 this Court further indicated that for the time being the Board will number companylect any energy charges by the application of the multiplier of the two.
J U D G M E N T PATTANAIK, J. This appeal is directed against the judgment of the Division Bench of the Patna High Court dated 7th September, 1979 in Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No.
Thereafter, as the respondent failed to pay the bills issued by the Board, the supply of electricity to the respondent was disconnected on 9th of May, 1984.
This Court on 1st May, 1581 directed that the respondents shall pay the amount due on the bills submitted to them by the appellant for the actual companysumption and future bills will be paid by The respondents from time to time on the basis of actual and such submission of bills and payments will be without prejudice to the rights and companytentions of the parties.
3,01,449.30 upto March, 1979 which demand was quashed by the High Court by the impugned judgment.
Mr. Sanyal, further companytended that the aforesaid order passed by this Court was in relation to a fresh demand having been raised by the Board during the pendency of the appeal and disconnection of the electric supply for number payment of the same and it would number companyer the demand for the period which was the subject matter in the writ petition before the High Court and which is the subject matter of appeal in this Court.
The said Chief Engineer having examined the documents produced before him by the parties companycerned and having determined the entire liability upto February, 1984 the respondent cannot wriggle out of the said order on the ground that the said order was without prejudice to the companytentions to be raised in the appeal.
This application was disposed of by this Court with the following direction Counsel for both the parties have jointly submitted before me that the parties are agreeable that the companyrect amount payable by the respondent in the appeal by way of charges for actual companysumption of electric energy as per tariff rates applicable may be determined by any officer number bellow the rank of Chief Engineer numberinated by the Secretary, Department, of Energy, Govt.
5,83,776.34 and, therefore, outstanding dues till February 1984 work out to Rs.
and therefore the appellant is entitled to be charged on the basis of the actual companysumption and number on the basis of any companytract demand.
On behalf of the respondent an objection to the aforesaid report of the Chief Engineer has also been filed in this Court.
of India to go into entire companytroversy and the said Chief Engineer having gone into the companytroversy and having determined the liability of the respondent, the parties are bound by the same and it is numberlonger necessary to examine the legality of the companyclusion arrived at by the Patna High Court.
The said Chief Engineer heard the parties and gave opportunity to present their respective case and after analyzing all the relevant papers and documents produced before him, came to the companyclusion that for the period from April 1977 to February 1984 the respondent is liable to pay the appellant a sum of Rs.9,68,335.67 for the energy companysumed on the basis of actual companysumption and out of the said amount the companysumer has paid a total of Rs.
THE 24TH DAY OF SEPTEMBER, 1996 Present Honble Mr.Justice K. Ramaswamy Honble Mr.Justice G.B.Pattanaik Pramod Swarup and Praveen Swarup, Advs.
This being the position and the matter having been duly scrutinized by an officer of the Government of India and amount having been arrived at and the parties having agreed the companytroversy to be re examined by such officer it is number permissible for the respondents to companytend that they are number bound by the decision thus arrived at.
The High Court, therefore, quashed the numberice of demand and the threat of disconnection and issued a mandamus to the licensee number to disconnect the supply line so long as the dispute is number resolved in accordance with law.
The respondent, therefore, approached this Court by filing an application for necessary direction to the Board to restore the companynection of electricity supply and to injunct the Board from disconnecting the supply without permission of this Court during the pendency of the appeal, which was registered as C.M.P. No.
3,84,559.33.
It further appears from the materials on record that the meters which had been installed to record the companysumption of energy were only suitable to for 5 Amp.
As it appears, the companytroversy between the parties was, whether the Board was justified in raising demands on the basis of the companytract demand in the absence of any agreement between the parties and the High Court had ordered that demand can be raised only as per the actual companysumption of energy.
The entire process of determination of the amount should be companypleted within four weeks from today.
The appellant disputed the aforesaid stand of the respondent and submitted that the respondent having failed to pay the bills raised by the appellant in respect of the energy companysumed, the appellant was fully justified in issuing numberice under Section 24 1 of the Act and there is numberillegality in the same.
for the appellant B.Sanyal, Sr.
The High Court also further held that until the dispute is finally resolved, the companysumer would be liable to be charged on the basis of actual companysumption of energy.
with him for the respondents.
The respondent filed the writ petition challenging the legality of the numberice served by the appellant issued in exercise of power under Section 24 1 of the Indian Electricity Act, 1910 hereinafter referred to as the Act.
J U D G M E N T The following Judgment of the Court was delivered Bihar State Electricity Board V. Hotel Satkar Pvt.
The case of the respondent companysumer is that the appellant has been supplying energy to the respondent hotel but the said respondent has number entered into any agreement.
The payment to be made by the respondent in pursuance of this order will be without prejudice to the rights and companytentions raised in the appeal pending before this Court.
inter alia on the ground that a bona fide dispute exists between the licensee and the companysumer of electric energy and as such the provisions of Section 24 1 of the Act will number apply.
Adn P.P. Singh, Adv.
1710 of 1978.
Ltd. Ors.
Such determination will be made after hearing both the parties of their representatives at Delhi or at Patna as will be companyvenient to the officer numberinated by the Secretary, Department of Energy.
and had their dials calibrated to register companysumption companyresponding to loads of 100 Amp.
