Himachal Bhavan In Delhi 'On Sale' As Sukhu Govt Fails To Clear Power Firm’s Dues

Shimla: The Himachal Pradesh High Court on Monday issued an order allowing the sale of the state Bhavan in Delhi after Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu's government failed to pay the electricity dues amounting to approximately Rs 150 crore.

The court also ordered the Principal Secretary of the Electricity Department to conduct a fact-finding probe into this matter, so that the officials responsible for the negligence could be identified.

The decision by the court comes after the Congress government led by Sukhu in the state ignored previous orders by the authorities where it was asked to repay Rs 64 crore, which now increased to Rs 150 crore due to a 7 per cent interest.

As per media reports, the case relates to the 400 MW Seli Hydro Project on the Chenab River in Lahaul-Spiti. The high court had previously warned the Himachal Pradesh government that failure to pay these due would lead to serious consequences. It also asserted that the funds involved were from the state treasury.

With this latest decision, the high court has now allowed the company to auction Himachal Bhavan to recover the outstanding amount.

Himachal govt files LPA against court’s decision 

The Himachal government however filed an LPA against the court's decision. Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said that although he did not read the High Court order, "the upfront premium is based on a policy under which, when the energy policy was made in 2006, I was the main architect".

"We had kept a reserve price per megawatt on which the companies had bid. There was a decision made by arbitration in the matter of upfront premium. Our government went to the High Court against the arbitration order and the government had to deposit Rs 64 crore in arbitration," he added.

BJP slams Himachal govt

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) launched a scathing attack on the Himachal Pradesh’s Sukhu government for not being able to pay the salaries of their employees and also for the imposition of the so-called "toilet tax".

BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala while speaking to news agency ANI said that wherever Congress has come to power, it has brought with it "loot and barbaadi (destruction)".
"They (Himachal government) are busy investigating samosas and the situation is such that the Himachal Bhawan is now on the verge of being sold to pay the dues of power companies," he added.