In an RTI application filed with the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) on Tuesday, anti-graft activist Arvind Kejriwal has sought to know if the DERC Chairman or any of his family members had any relations with the Tatas or any Reliance company. Both industrial groups head the key power distribution companies in Delhi.

Kejriwal’s India Against Corruption (IAC) has also sought to know whether it was true that the then chairperson of DERC had drafted a tariff order in April-May 2010, which was approved by the then Chairperson and one member recommending reduction in tariff. The order has since become a matter of dispute in a PIL filed by one Nand Lal Garg, an IAC release said.

IAC and the Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party recently carried out a campaign against the recent steep hike in power tariff in Delhi, after which the regulator re-introduced the old slab system.

In the RTI, Kejriwal said he also wanted to inspect all the files related to this subject and those related to correspondence between the Delhi Government and DERC on this subject during April 1, 2010 to March 31, 2011 to get the right picture about the sequence of events that led to the tariff hike.

“DERC has mastered the art of dodging RTI applications by asking people to specify file numbers or order numbers. How does DERC expect ordinary people to know specific file numbers?” Kejriwal said.

He said his RTI application made it clear which order was being sought from the DERC and urged the regulator to provide the same to IAC.

> aditi.n@thehindu.co.in

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