PIL in Bombay HC challenges the "unrealistic bills" charged for electricity by Discoms in Maharashtra during Lockdown

Mahibub D Sheikh, a social worker and editor of a regional newspaper, “Bandhuprem” has moved a PIL seeking relief from the Bombay High Court on contentions that unusually high charges for electricity-usage were recently imposed across the state of Maharashtra.."Various anomalies are found in the inflated bills received by the Consumers for the month of June 2020. the Petitioner and other similarly placed consumers across the State have been complaining about the unrealistic inflated bills by State discoms as well as private discoms. The wrong calculation has hit the citizen for not taking the reading for three months, hence the consumers have to pay extra unit rate", Shaikh says in his petition..The petitioner records that the Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission [MERC] directed the State Electricity Distribution Company Limited [MSEDCL] to suspend “non-essential activities” including meter-reading, billing, and bill payment in the wake of the State-wide and subsequently nation-wide lockdown. .Consumers were given the option of submitting their self-readings for the purpose of billing, in lieu of which bills would be generated based upon the consumer’s average power consumption during the months of December, January, and February, the petition notes..During this time, the petitioner states that MERC raised the power tariff for consumers of all categories and slabs of power consumption, with increments instead of the reductions sought.."For example, MSEDCL had sought a reduction in wheeling charge from Rs1.28 per unit to Rs1.15 per unit. Commission has increased it to Rs1.45 per unit. The energy charge for 0-100 units domestic slab was proposed to be Rs3.30 per unit. MERC has increased it to Rs3.36 per unit. This has been done for all slabs and all categories.".The high rates charged added to the prevailing economic and financial distress during the pandemic, which has “burnt a hole in the pockets of middle class and lower-middle-class persons”, the petitioner submits..It is submitted that Section 61 of the Electricity Act, 2003 provides for guidelines for determining tariff. Sub-clause(d) ensures safeguarding consumers interest and at the same time, recovery of the cost of electricity in a reasonable manner. However, in the present circumstances this imposition of hiked charges over the already existing exorbitant charges for electricity in the state, cannot be termed as reasonable or in consumer interest, the petition states..Shaikh further notes that concerns raised by consumers with electricity distribution companies (discoms) have been unheeded or responded to with technicalities..Urging the government to rethink the tariffs, which the Petition records as being “four to eight times the normal bills expected during summers” even going up to 8 to 16 times their billing amounts, the Petitioner seeks directives to the respondent discoms, the MSEDCL, and the MERC to defer or calculate electricity consumption based upon previous rates.."... it is imperative to extend some benefit to the consumers/citizens by rolling down/deferring the tariff rise declared by the State due to which several lakhs of consumers have suffered financially and further extend the benefit to the consumers by waiving the minimum charges / fixed charges and extension of time to pay the bills and waiver from electricity duty until the situation comes to normalcy."the petitioner asserts..Advocate Ranjit Shinde, Rajesh Inamdar and Kalyani Tulankar represent Shaikh in his litigation.