A division bench comprising Chief Justice of the Delhi high court Dipak Misra and Justice Manmo-han asked the city government to explain the delay in appointment of Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) chairman, after retirement of Birjender Singh as the government counsel failed to explain it. The court also sought the
file on the appointment of J.P. Singh, the Delhi government’s present principal secretary, as DERC member. Mr Singh’s name has been finalised for appointment as commission member in place of S.R. Sethi, who is to retire on January 23.
The court’s direction came after hearing a petition linked to the power tariff in city.
The petition, filed by BJP leader Nand Kishor Garg, has sought directions to the government against interfering with commission’s tariff fixation process.
The issue of delay in DERC chairman’s appointment came up during its hearing as the petitioner alleged that the government has failed to follow the DE Act provisions under which a sitting or retire HC judge is entitled to be appointed as DERC chairman, but the government is sitting over the matter since last September.
Meanwhile, the counsel for various power distribution companies BSES and NDPL submitted that they were running in loss due to delay by DERC in fixing the tariff for 2010-11.