High Court stays Centre's order to divert power supply from Delhi's share to Haryana

In an attempt to avert an immediate power crisis, the Delhi High Court has stayed the Centre's order to transfer power generated by a Dadri thermal station to Haryana.

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday stayed central government's order on the transfer power generated by a Dadri thermal station from the national capital to Haryana. Justice Yashwant Varma issued a notice of a petition by BSES Rajdhani Power Limited challenging a March 29 order of the Ministry of Power in relation to the transfer of power supply from the Dadri-II plant to another state and granted time to the central government counsel to take instructions.

The petitioner claimed that the order is without jurisdiction and if implemented, 23 per cent of the populace of the national capital would be deprived of power in the next 24 hours. "Till the next date of listing, there shall be a stay of the impugned order of 29 March 2022. List at the top of the board on 01.04.2022," the court ordered.

"The court also takes note of the averments made in paragraph 5 of the writ petition where the petitioners aver that the impugned order would, if permitted to operate, come into effect from 00:00 hours on Friday 1 April 2022. The resultant deficiency would have to be arranged before 10:00 A.M. on Thursday i.e. 31 March 2022. Matter requires consideration," it added.

The petitioner argued that the respondent authorities have no power to reallocate power that forms part of the allocation made in favour of the petitioner and duly approved by the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC). It disputed the recital in the order in connection with the Delhi government having surrendered the power and said that the surrender which was contemplated was with respect to the Dadri-I thermal power plant alone.

The court also noted the order of the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission which categorically recorded that the Commission had not communicated any request to the Ministry of Power to either re-allocate or surrender the share of NCT from Dadri-II to other States and that the Power Purchase Agreement executed between the petitioning DISCOMS with NTPC which are valid up to July 30, 2035.

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