H.D. Kumaraswamy accuses Bescom of penalising him extra in ‘power theft’ case under political pressure  

H.D. Kumaraswamy pays ₹68,526 penalty to Bescom for drawing power directly from pole. Alleges penalty higher than it should be due to political pressure.

Former Chief Minister and senior JD(S) leader H.D. Kumaraswamy on Friday, November 17, paid off a penalty of ₹68,526 to Bangalore Electricity Supply Company (Bescom), after he was penalised by the Vigilance Department of the company for drawing power directly from a pole for serial lights at his J.P. Nagar residence, during Deepavali. However, he alleged that he was fined more than he should have been for the offence, due to political reasons. 

“For my residence, I have a sanction for 33 kV from Bescom. Under the ‘power theft’ accusation, Bescom had said that 2.5 kV electricity was used for lighting when in reality only 1 kV was used. They have falsely accused me of using 2.5 kV. I do not know under whose pressure they have done this,” he alleged. 

He added, “I have used 71 units. Even if they had penalised me three times the charges, it would have been ₹2,526. But Bescom has asked me to pay ₹68,000 after billing me ₹66,000 for the 33 kV sanction I have for my house. Instead of going by the rules, they have penalised me more. If this is what happens to a former Chief Minister, then what about the plight of the common people?” he asked. 

After paying the bill, Mr. Kumaraswamy wrote a letter to the Bescom Vigilance Department demanding a transparent action in the case and bill him as per the actual load of the serial set connection for the said day, instead of billing him excessively owing to political pressure. He has also requested the official to re-calculate and furnish him a revised bill and also provide him a Mahazar report.  

An official response from the Energy Minister’s office is awaited for the allegations.