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Western Electricity Supply Company of Orissa Ltd. v. Baba Baijanath Roller and Flour Mill Pvt. Ltd.

Special Leave Petition (Civil) · Neutral citation not assigned (Special Leave Petition (Civil) No. 3396 of 2011)Decided 26 Mar 2014
Special Leave Petition (Civil) No. 3396 of 2011
Justice Gyan Sudha Misra · Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose

Background

An electricity supplier raised a penal bill after an inspection found broken seals and interference with a flour mill's metering equipment. The mill claimed that its meter was merely defective and successfully obtained an order quashing the bill and related charges from the High Court.

Decision Breakdown

The Court allowed the supplier's appeals, set aside the High Court's order and dismissed the mill's writ petitions. The inspection took place in the mill manager's presence, and unsupported allegations that he signed under pressure did not displace the inspection record. The statutory procedure for referring a genuinely defective meter to an Electrical Inspector did not govern allegations of fraudulent tampering. The applicable supply code authorised penal billing for unauthorised consumption, which the High Court had failed to consider.

Lesson Learnt

A defective-meter complaint and an allegation of deliberate meter tampering follow different legal routes; consumers should preserve inspection records and use the remedy applicable to their actual dispute.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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