CAG to HC: Delhi discoms not cooperating

The matter pertaining to CAG audit of telecom firms is coming before the Supreme Court on Tuesday

The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) and the Delhi government on Monday told the Delhi High Court the three discoms - Tata Power Delhi Distribution Ltd and Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group firms, BSES Rajdhani Power Ltd and BSES Yamuna Power Ltd - were violating its order by not cooperating with the auditing body.

They submitted before a bench of Acting Chief Justice B D Ahmed and Justice S Mridul the discoms were not providing documents sought by the CAG after the firms sought their appeal against the order of the single-judge of the high court, directing them to cooperate with the auditor, be heard on March 7.

The discoms sought an adjournment on the grounds that the matter pertaining to CAG audit of telecom firms was coming before the Supreme Court on Tuesday.

On the other hand, advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the Delhi government said first of all "this appeal does not lie as they (discoms) are in contempt of the single judge's order".

Senior advocate Aman Lekhi, appearing for CAG, also agreed with Bhushan's submission that the discoms were not cooperating with it.

Bhushan and Lekhi sought the matter be listed before the division bench which was hearing a PIL by a joint association of resident welfare associations seeking CAG audit of discoms.

The court, however, renotified the matter before it on March 24.

The court was hearing the intra-court appeal of the three discoms who had challenged the January 24 order of the single judge who had not only refused to stall the CAG audit of the discoms, but also asked them to co-operate with the top auditor by furnishing the details sought.

The discoms had initially moved the high court here against the January 7 decision of the Aam Aadmi Party-led government seeking CAG audit, saying the top auditor was not empowered to scrutinise accounts of private companies.

The three private firms had come into being in 2002, when the Delhi government decided to privatise power distribution.

Delhi discoms are 51:49 per cent joint ventures between private companies and Delhi government.