IN THE HIGH COURT OF BOMBAY
M. S. JAWALKAR
Maha. State Electricity Distri. Co. Ltd. Thr. Executive Engineer (ADM. ) – Appellant
Versus
Meera Enterprise Thr. Its Proprietor Hasmukh Patel Washim – Respondent
JUDGMENT :
(M.S. Jawalkar, J.)
Heard learned Counsel for petitioner.
2. The Petitioner, by the instant Petition, is challenging the final order passed in CGRF case No. 120/2023 dated 05/04/2024, whereby, the Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum, Akola (CGRF For Short) partly allowed the grievance in application of the respondent and directed the petitioner, to refund balance security deposit of old connection with interest, to revise the energy bills of consumer by assuming that its contract demand is 616 KVA, to refund electricity duty and to pay to the consumer subsidy given by the Government as per Government Notification.
3. The petitioner being a Distribution Licensee was initially supplying power through its High Tension lines to the respondent with contract demand 900 KVA as per its agreement with the respondent consumer. The electricity supply was provided since 20/06/2019 and was billed with consumer No. 326099026590. It is submitted that the respondent consumer in due course of time, though consumed the electricity but did not pay its bills and as a result of which, there were outstanding arrears. The respondent consumer requested the petitioner to permanently disconnect its su
The Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum lacks jurisdiction to direct revisions of energy bills and grant subsidies, which fall under the authority of the Government of Maharashtra.
The Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum lacks jurisdiction to revise energy bills or grant subsidies, which are matters for the Government of Maharashtra.
The court established that the Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum (CGRF) had jurisdiction to adjudicate individual billing grievances, rejecting the argument that such disputes should be referred to ....
The main legal point established in the judgment is the consumers' agreement to bear infrastructural costs and purchase meters and metering cubicles, which negated their claim for refund under the Re....
The Consumer Grievances Redressal Forum lacks jurisdiction to entertain complaints related to theft of energy under the Electricity Act, which are to be addressed by specific statutory forums.
The distribution licensee cannot impose additional fees for transformer losses on consumers billed at low tension rates, as per established tariff regulations.
The court established that an electricity company can issue revised bills for bona fide mistakes in billing, reinforcing the consumer's obligation to pay based on accurate meter readings.
The court emphasized the importance of providing an opportunity of hearing against provisional assessment bills as mandated by Section 126(3) of the Electricity Act, 2003.
The court ruled that a distribution licensee cannot maintain a writ petition against the decisions of its own Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum, which operates as an internal mechanism under the Ele....
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