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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
AMIT BORKAR
Illiyas Mangroo Shaikh – Appellant
Versus
Bombay Electricity Supply and Transport Undertaking – Respondent
| Table of Content |
|---|
| 1. challenge to unauthorized electricity assessment (Para 1 , 2 , 3) |
| 2. arguments on entitlement to interest on deposit (Para 4 , 5) |
| 3. court's review scope under article 227 (Para 6 , 7 , 8 , 9) |
| 4. interpretation of statutory provisions on interest (Para 10 , 11 , 12) |
| 5. equity vs. express statutory provisions (Para 13 , 14 , 15) |
| 6. judicial interpretation and legislative intent (Para 16 , 17) |
| 7. no enforceable claim for interest on deposits (Para 18) |
| 8. dismissal of writ petition (Para 19 , 20) |
JUDGMENT :
AMIT BORKAR, J.
1. By this writ petition under Article 227 of the Constitution of India, the petitioner challenges the judgment and order passed by the Appellate Authority under Section 127 of the Electricity Act, 2003. The Appellate Authority set aside the final assessment order passed by the Assessing Officer, which had held the petitioner guilty of unauthorised use of electricity on the allegation that the petitioner had bypassed the electricity meter installed at its premises.
2. The petitioner runs a unit for manufacturing plastic granules since 2006 and has been a consumer of the respondent-licensee since 2008. On 26 February 2011, at about 00:12 hours, respondent No.
The statutory deposit made under the Electricity Act does not carry an entitlement to interest when an assessment is set aside, as the Act does not provide for such a liability.
The requirement for deposit of 50% of the assessed amount under the Electricity Act does not share the same limitation period as the appeal, allowing for a reasonable delay in deposit.
The court clarified that a late deposit of the assessed amount does not bar an appeal if filed within the statutory limitation period, emphasizing a purposive interpretation of the law.
Electricity - Unauthorized use of electricity - Assessment of electricity charge contemplated in this section is immediately after disconnection but before lodging complaint and that too for the purp....
The court established that consumers must follow statutory procedures for contesting electricity theft assessments and that reconnection is contingent upon compliance with these procedures.
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