HC junks BSES pleas against Delhi government’s proposed CAG audit

The Delhi High Court on Monday declined to interfere with the Delhi government’s proposal to have the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) audit power distribution companies BSES Rajdhani Power Ltd. and BSES Yamuna Power Ltd.

A vacation Bench led by Justice Tejas Karia dismissed petitions filed by the discoms, holding that their challenge was premature.

Welcoming the order, Power Minister Ashish Sood said the judgment had “completely unmasked the failure” of the previous Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government. He accused AAP of colluding with the discoms to evade financial scrutiny and overburden consumers, prompting a sharp rebuttal from the Opposition party.

‘Definite collusion’

“Our government has always maintained that there was collusion between the electricity companies and the Aam Aadmi Party. In 2015, citing a particular judgment, it was claimed that a CAG audit of the discoms was not permissible. Arvind Kejriwal [AAP chief and former Delhi Chief Minister] and his government did nothing thereafter,” said the Minister.

Mr. Sood added that the discoms’ opposition to the audit reinforced his government’s allegations.

“The electricity companies, Arvind Kejriwal and the AAP government were in cahoots. They deliberately avoided an audit while burdening Delhi residents in the name of regulatory assets,” he alleged.

‘Allegations baseless’

In response, Leader of the Opposition in Delhi Atishi accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government of failing to ensure uninterrupted power supply, alleging that outages have become frequent and electricity tariffs have risen under its watch.

She said instead of addressing these issues, the BJP has been busy levelling baseless allegations. “Our government ordered an audit of the discoms on the pension surcharge issue in October 2024. It asked the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission to conduct a special audit through CAG-approved auditors to ensure transparency and protect the interests of more than 20,000 Delhi Vidyut Board pensioners. If there was a nexus between AAP and the discoms, why would our government order an audit of those very companies?” she said.

(With inputs from PTI)