MPs use electricity with 'impunity'

Unpaid power, water charges in NDMC amounts to Rs 6.27 crore

Unpaid power and water bills of former and sitting MPs in New Delhi Municipal Council area totals up to Rs 6.27 crore with 3,335 defaulters.

In case of MTNL, the unpaid bills amount to Rs 7.10 crore with 339 defaulters, said an RTI reply.

Activist Subhash Chandra Agarwal had filed the RTI application. The reply sent by the urban development ministry through the NDMC chairman revealed the details of the bills pending up to the October 2011 cycle.

The highest pending NDMC bill is in the name of former Lok Sabha MP Aba Ghani Khan, amounting to nearly Rs 3.3 lakh, followed by another ex-Lok Sabha MP Rajesh Pilot, whose bill amounts to Rs 1.27 lakh.

The highest unpaid amount of Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd bill of Rs 22 lakh is in the name of Janardhan Yadav, a former Rajya Sabha MP, followed by former Parliamentarian Basava Raj Patil whose bill adds up to Rs 17 lakh.

Sitting MP C S Yadav’s pending NDMC bill is the highest at Rs 4.5 lakh. Another sitting MP B G Jalwali joins the rank with an unpaid bill of Rs 3.7 lakh.

Sitting Lok Sabha MP Ram Sunder Das has the highest unpaid MTNL bill in his name, which stands at Rs 9.49 crore, followed by MP Bhakta Charan Das whose arrears are Rs 3.31 crore.

“Even when bills of such huge sums are lying pending, these departments have got the directives to not to disconnect electricity, water and telephone connections of these Parliamentarians for non-payment of dues. They are already privileged to get large number of free units,” said Agarwal.

Strongly reacting to the disconnection of electricity and water supply of poor people, Agarwal said, “Chief minister Sheila Dikshit should first order instant disconnection of electricity supply of Parliamentarians if a single penny is outstanding in their bills. The CM should take stringent measures to recover such outstanding amount.”
Agarwal has also filed a complaint against the defaulters with police.

“The complaint is against those responsible for not taking action for instant disconnection,” he added.