PIL alleges under-recovery of penalty from Adani Power

AHMEDABAD: Gujarat High Court today issued notice to Adani Power Ltd (APL) and the state government on a PIL seeking CBI probe into alleged under-recovery of Rs 160 crore by the state-owned Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Ltd (GUVNL).

The division bench of Chief Justice Bhaskar Bhattacharya and Justice J B Pardiwala also issued notices to GUVNL and Gujarat Energy Transmission Corporation Limited (GETCO).

The court has directed them to file affidavits explaining reasons for alleged under-recovery of Rs 160 crore penalty from APL under the power purchase agreement with GUVNL.

The next hearing would be after two weeks. The PIL has been filed by general secretary of Gujarat chapter of People's Union for Civil Liberty (PUCL) alleging that GUVNL passed on undue benefits to APL, which resulted in loss of Rs 160 crore to state exchequer.

"Based on the reports of Comptroller and Auditor General of India ( CAG), GUVNL had not recovered Rs 160.26 crore out of the total Rs 240.08 crore penalty on APL," claims the petition.