Rewarding supporters of its bijli-paani movement, the AAP government granted 50% waiver on pending bills of consumers who had heeded the party’s call in 2012 to stop paying power bills. The subsidy amounts to Rs 6 crore and will benefit 24,036 consumers, whose penalties for default too have been waived.
The cabinet’s decision came under fire from other parties who said the government was rewarding non-payers at the expense of law abiding citizens. The subsidy would apply to consumers who did not pay between October 2012 and May 2013 (duration of the stir) and continued till December, AAP minister Manish Sisodia said.
Soon after its formation, AAP had launched a ‘bijli satyagraha’ against “inflated” power bills in the capital. As part of the campaign, Kejriwal had urged people to stop paying their power bills. Although around 10 lakh people had signed AAP’s petition against power distribution companies during the agitation, only 24,000-odd consumers actually stopped paying their bills.
The government has clarified that consumers who paid their bills during this period will not be refunded. The list of people who would be given this relief has been collected from data provided by discoms as well AAP’s own database, said sources. “During this period, a total of 2,508 electricity meters were also disconnected by the authorities for non-payment. The government has decided to provide relief to those people also. It will consider closure of theft cases registered against some consumers during the previous government’s regime,” an official said.
Congress and BJP have slammed the move. “They have not accounted for where Rs 6 crore will come from. This is playing with tax-payers’ money,” said DPCC president Arvinder Singh.
BJP said the government was being unfair to lakhs of people who honestly paid their bills. “Why is this benefit extended to a select group of people? There were so many who supported BJP’s movement against discoms. This will put a burden of Rs 6 crore on honest taxpayers,” said Vijay Goel, president of Delhi BJP.
Experts warned that implementing the relief scheme would not be easy. “Waiving off penalty and late payment surcharge is not within the jurisdiction of the government. One has to see what the Rs 6 crore relief package includes. Is it only for the waiver amount or does it also include penalties many consumers might have to pay?” said an official.
Power industry officials say the move amounted to ‘encouraging theft’ and ‘incentivizing those who participated in a civil disobedience movement’. “They encouraged people to not pay for their consumption and then rewarded them for it, just for political gains. There are people who still supported AAP but also paid their bills… why punish them for being law abiding?” asked an expert.
The cabinet’s decision came under fire from other parties who said the government was rewarding non-payers at the expense of law abiding citizens. The subsidy would apply to consumers who did not pay between October 2012 and May 2013 (duration of the stir) and continued till December, AAP minister Manish Sisodia said.
Soon after its formation, AAP had launched a ‘bijli satyagraha’ against “inflated” power bills in the capital. As part of the campaign, Kejriwal had urged people to stop paying their power bills. Although around 10 lakh people had signed AAP’s petition against power distribution companies during the agitation, only 24,000-odd consumers actually stopped paying their bills.
The government has clarified that consumers who paid their bills during this period will not be refunded. The list of people who would be given this relief has been collected from data provided by discoms as well AAP’s own database, said sources. “During this period, a total of 2,508 electricity meters were also disconnected by the authorities for non-payment. The government has decided to provide relief to those people also. It will consider closure of theft cases registered against some consumers during the previous government’s regime,” an official said.
Congress and BJP have slammed the move. “They have not accounted for where Rs 6 crore will come from. This is playing with tax-payers’ money,” said DPCC president Arvinder Singh.
BJP said the government was being unfair to lakhs of people who honestly paid their bills. “Why is this benefit extended to a select group of people? There were so many who supported BJP’s movement against discoms. This will put a burden of Rs 6 crore on honest taxpayers,” said Vijay Goel, president of Delhi BJP.
Experts warned that implementing the relief scheme would not be easy. “Waiving off penalty and late payment surcharge is not within the jurisdiction of the government. One has to see what the Rs 6 crore relief package includes. Is it only for the waiver amount or does it also include penalties many consumers might have to pay?” said an official.
Power industry officials say the move amounted to ‘encouraging theft’ and ‘incentivizing those who participated in a civil disobedience movement’. “They encouraged people to not pay for their consumption and then rewarded them for it, just for political gains. There are people who still supported AAP but also paid their bills… why punish them for being law abiding?” asked an expert.
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