Santasree Chakraborty v. The West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Co Ltd & ORS

04.01.2021 sb Ct23

IN THE HIGH COURT AT CALCUTTA

CONSTITUTIONAL WRIT JURISDICTION APPELLATE SIDE WPA 1227 of 2020 Santasree Chakraborty Vs.

West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company Limited & Ors.

Mr. Chittapriya Ghosh, Ms. Priyanka Saha ... For the petitioner.

Mr. Amitabh Gupta, Mr. P.C. Pandey .... For WBSEDCL.

Affidavit of service filed in Court today is taken on record.

The petitioner says that the petitioner has purchased a property within the limits of Bhadreswar Municipality under a registered deed dated 28th May, 2013. The particulars of the vacant land purchased under the said deed is provided in the schedule thereof. The petitioner says that West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (in short, WBSEDCL), has installed a pole mounted transformer just in front of the petitioner's vacant plot, which is causing hindrance to the petitioner's egress and ingress to the said plot. The petitioner says that by a letter dated 18th January, 2019, the petitioner has made a representation before the concerned Assistant Engineer.

The said

representation has remained pending. The petitioner has, therefor, invoked writ jurisdiction to ventilate his grievances.

On behalf of the WBSEDCL, it is submitted that the transformer has been installed on the municipal road and not on the petitioner's plot of land.

Be that as it may, if a person is aggrieved with the work carried out by the licensee, the said person is required to approach the concerned District Magistrate under the provisions of West Bengal Works Licensees Rules, 2006.

In the facts and circumstances as aforesaid, after hearing the parties and considering the materials on record, I direct the petitioner to approach the District Magistrate, Hooghly, ventilating his grievances. The petitioner shall make such representation within 20th January, 2021. In the event, such representation is made, the concerned District Magistrate, after affording a reasonable opportunity of hearing to the parties shall dispose of the petitioner's representation within three months from the date of receiving the petitioner's representation by a reasoned order.

It is made clear that I have not gone into the merits of the matter and it will be open to the concerned District Magistrate to decide all the issues

involved without being influenced by this order. Nothing further remains to be adjudicated in this writ petition and the same is accordingly disposed of without any order as to costs.

Since I have not called for any affidavits, the allegations contained in the writ petition are deemed to have not been admitted by the respondent. Urgent photostat certified copy of this order, if applied for, is to be given to the parties upon usual undertakings.

(Arindam Mukherjee, J.)