NEW DELHI: Electricity is an essential service and a person cannot be deprived of it without a cogent and lawful reason, said the Delhi High Court. The court stated that even when there is a dispute over the ownership of a property, the authorities cannot deprive its legal occupant of electricity by insisting on a no objection certificate (NOC) from those claiming to be the owners.
“There is no gainsaying that electricity is an essential service, of which a person cannot be deprived without cogent, lawful reason. It is well-settled that even if disputes exist as to ownership of the property at which an electricity connection is sought, the authorities concerned cannot deprive the legal occupant thereof by insisting that an NOC be furnished from others who also claim to be owners,” said the court.
The court’s observation came on a petition by two senior citizens who sought a direction to BSES-YPL to install a fresh electricity metre at the premises they were residing in. It was the petitioners’ grievance that to install the metre, BSES-YPL was seeking an NOC from the brothers of one of the petitioners, with whom they were engaged in a court case over partition of the property.
The court noted that presently, the petitioners were getting electricity supply to their portion of the property as per an arrangement between the parties, but the same caused multiple disputes. The court, in its order, noted that the Supreme Court has said in a decision that electricity is a basic amenity and cannot be declined even to a tenant on any ground.