Meter scam to be re-probed as police cite lack of evidence

PATIALA: With the district police apparently filing a report in a local court, underlining that the charges incorporated in the FIR registered into the Rs 50-lakh meter reversal scam could not be substantiated with evidence, the Punjab DGP and power secretary have ordered a reinvestigation into the matter. The orders have been issued after the whistle-blower in the case wrote to chief minister Amarinder Singh.

The chief minister’s office on Wednesday asked the officials concerned to take immediate action as per government rules and policies in the matter and file an action taken report at the earliest.

The alleged scam had come to light in August 2016, when an email by an assistant engineer in the information technology department of the PSPCL to the superintendent engineer pointed out that meter reading of 20 consumers had been reversed using the password of sub-divisional officer (SDO).

It emerged that the employees and the officials of the PSPCL would identify consumers with high power consumption and would ask them not to deposit their bimonthly bills prepared on the basis of actual readings by on-the-spot billing machines for a year.

While their connections were not disconnected, employees of the corporation reversed the meter reading in the backend computer server and the power bills of these consumers, which were in lakhs, were reduced to a few thousands, thus causing losses to the power corporation.

Later, the meters were shown as faulty and were removed from the premises of these consumers and discarded.

The scam had been reported from Patiala’s north sub-division following which the chief engineer (north) conducted a preliminary investigation which confirmed the involvement of the PSPCL employees. The chief engineer had confirmed meter reversal of consumers, causing losses of Rs 50 lakh to PSPCL in the north sub-division alone.

The corporation then suspended eight employees in September 2016 and in July 2017, an FIR was also registered against five persons including a sub-divisional officer of the corporation under Sections 135 and 138 of the Electricity Act of the 2013 and 409, 468, 471, 477, 167, 201,120-B of the IPC and Sections 65 of the IT Act.

Favouring custodial interrogation, a local court had also dismissed the anticipatory bail plea moved by the accused.

On July 9, Akash Verma, who has been pursuing this case, shot a letter to chief minister Amarinder Singh alleging that the police have filed a report in the court which said the charges mentioned in the FIR could not be substantiated. Afterwards, the Punjab DGP asked Patiala SSP to reinvestigate the matter. The power secretary also wrote to the PSPCL authorities to take action in the matter.

SSP S Bhoopathi said any reports filed by the department were subjected to scrutiny of various agencies and the final outcome of the police investigations would be as per merit and based on the evidence that has been put on record.

Meanwhile, Akash Verma claimed that there was sufficient evidence to nail the culprits in the scam. He alleged that mighty efforts were being made at the highest possible levels to protect the accused.