APTEL

This page explains electricity disputes: cgrf, regulatory commissions and APTEL in plain terms: the law, the forum, the documents and the usual steps. Legals365 is the legal platform of Advocate B.K. Singh and associates, based in Delhi NCR.

In short. Most electricity disputes start with a complaint to the distribution company, then the Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum (CGRF) and the Electricity Ombudsman. Theft and unauthorised use assessments under sections 126 and 135 follow a separate route. Tariff, licensing and generator disputes go to the state or central regulatory commission, with appeal to APTEL within 45 days.

Electricity disputes in India run through a set of forums created by the Electricity Act 2003. A household or business with a billing or supply complaint deals with the distribution licensee, then the Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum and the Electricity Ombudsman. A consumer charged with theft or unauthorised use faces an assessment and, sometimes, a criminal case in a special court. Generators, licensees, open access users and large industrial consumers take tariff and contract disputes to the State Electricity Regulatory Commission or the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission, and from there to the Appellate Tribunal for Electricity (APTEL) in New Delhi.

This page explains which forum handles which electricity dispute, the time limits and deposits involved, how complaints and petitions are prepared, what documents decide these cases, and the mistakes that cost consumers and companies money. It applies to residential, commercial, industrial and agricultural connections, and to disputes involving any distribution company, whether in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana or elsewhere.

Law

Electricity Act 2003 (sections 42, 43, 56, 79, 86, 111, 125, 126, 127, 135, 145, 153); Electricity (Rights of Consumers) Rules 2020; state supply codes and CGRF and Ombudsman regulations; Consumer Protection Act 2019

Forum

Distribution company's internal grievance cell, CGRF, Electricity Ombudsman, assessing and appellate officers under sections 126 and 127, special courts for theft, State Commission (DERC, UPERC, HERC and others), CERC, APTEL, Supreme Court

Time limit

Section 127 appeal against a final assessment within 30 days with deposit of half the assessed amount; appeal to APTEL within 45 days of the commission's order (section 111); appeal to the Supreme Court within 60 days of APTEL's order (section 125); CGRF and Ombudsman limits set by state regulations

Documents

Electricity bills, meter reading records, connection agreement and load sanction, inspection report and seizure memo, provisional and final assessment orders, payment receipts, correspondence with the discom, petitions and orders of the forum or commission

Which forum handles which electricity dispute

The forum depends on what the dispute is about, not on how large the bill is. Ordinary consumer grievances, such as an inflated bill, a faulty meter, delay in a new connection, a wrong tariff category, load enhancement or disconnection, go first to the distribution licensee and then to the Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum set up under section 42(5) of the Electricity Act. If the CGRF does not resolve the grievance, the consumer can approach the Electricity Ombudsman under section 42(6).

Assessments for unauthorised use of electricity under section 126, for example using a domestic connection for a shop or running load beyond the sanction, follow a separate route: a provisional assessment, objections, a final assessment and an appeal under section 127. Theft under section 135, such as direct hooking or meter tampering, can lead both to a civil assessment and to a criminal case before a special court constituted under section 153.

Tariff determination, licensing, open access, power purchase approvals and disputes between generating companies and licensees belong to the regulatory commissions. The State Commission handles intra-state matters under section 86, and the Central Commission handles inter-state generation and transmission under section 79. Orders of either commission are appealed to APTEL under section 111, and APTEL's orders go to the Supreme Court under section 125.

Electricity disputes and where they go

Complaints to the discom and the CGRF

Every distribution licensee must have an internal grievance process, and the first written complaint should go there, with the account number, the disputed bill, the meter number and a clear statement of what is wrong. Many billing errors, such as estimated bills after a meter change or a wrong multiplying factor on a CT meter, are corrected at this stage when the complaint is specific and documented.

If the discom does not resolve the grievance, the consumer can file before the CGRF. The Electricity (Rights of Consumers) Rules 2020 and each state's regulations set out the composition of the forum, the time within which it must decide and the procedure. In Delhi the forums are attached to BSES Rajdhani, BSES Yamuna, Tata Power Delhi Distribution and NDMC; in western Uttar Pradesh they are attached to Paschimanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam for Ghaziabad and Noida, and to Noida Power Company for Greater Noida; in Haryana they are attached to the Dakshin and Uttar Haryana discoms. The procedure is informal and consumers often appear in person.

A CGRF complaint should attach the bills, the meter reading history, any test report on the meter, the complaint to the discom and its reply, and a short note on the relief asked for, such as revision of the bill, refund with interest, restoration of supply or compensation. Many state regulations require the consumer to deposit the undisputed part of the bill, or a specified portion of the disputed part, before or during the complaint, so check the current regulation.

The Electricity Ombudsman

A consumer not satisfied with the CGRF's order, or whose complaint is not decided in time, can file a representation before the Electricity Ombudsman appointed by the State Commission under section 42(6). The Ombudsman reviews the CGRF's decision, can call for records and hear both sides, and must decide within the time fixed by the regulations. Delhi has its own Electricity Ombudsman; Uttar Pradesh and Haryana have Ombudsmen appointed by UPERC and HERC.

The Ombudsman's order binds the licensee. If it is not implemented, the consumer can approach the State Commission, which can act under section 142 against a licensee that disobeys directions. An Ombudsman's order can be challenged in a High Court writ petition on limited grounds such as lack of jurisdiction or a clear error of law, but it is not a routine appeal.

Consumer commission or electricity forum

Supply of electricity is a service under the Consumer Protection Act 2019, so a consumer with a deficiency in service complaint, such as a wrong bill, a delayed connection or an unjustified disconnection, can usually choose between the CGRF route and a consumer complaint before the district or state commission. The Electricity Act preserves other remedies, and the Supreme Court has accepted that the consumer route remains available for ordinary service disputes.

There is an important exception. In U.P. Power Corporation Ltd v Anis Ahmad (2013), the Supreme Court held that a consumer commission cannot entertain a complaint against a final assessment under section 126 or against action for offences under sections 135 to 140, because the Electricity Act provides its own machinery for those. A consumer who receives a theft or unauthorised use assessment must use the section 127 appeal or the criminal court, not the consumer forum.

In practice, the CGRF is faster and cheaper for straightforward billing errors, while a consumer commission can award compensation and costs more freely. For commercial users who buy electricity for a business, whether they qualify as consumers under the 2019 Act depends on the purpose and facts, which is another reason to start with the CGRF.

Key sections of the Electricity Act 2003

Theft and unauthorised use assessments

These are the cases where consumers feel most exposed, because the amounts are large and the threat of disconnection and a criminal case is immediate. An inspection team visits, prepares an inspection report and often a seizure memo for the meter, and the discom issues a provisional assessment or a theft bill calculated on a formula in the supply code. The first thing to do is get copies of every document prepared at the site.

Unauthorised use under section 126 is a civil matter. Using a domestic connection for a commercial purpose, exceeding sanctioned load, or supplying electricity to premises not covered by the connection are typical examples. The consumer can file objections to the provisional assessment, attend the hearing and produce evidence, such as proof that the premises were residential or that the connected load was lower than recorded. If the final assessment is unfair, the section 127 appeal follows, with the 50 percent deposit.

Theft under section 135 is a criminal offence and is more serious. The questions in a theft case are usually whether the inspection followed the supply code, whether the meter was sealed and sent to a laboratory in the consumer's presence, whether the lab report actually shows tampering, and whether the person charged is the one who controlled the premises. A tenant, a landlord and a company director may each be pulled in, and their positions differ. Where an FIR or complaint has been filed, anticipatory bail and compounding are usually considered early.

When Advocate B.K. Singh reviews a theft assessment, the document he reads first is the inspection report, not the bill. The report shows whether the team recorded the connected load room by room, whether the consumer or a witness signed it, whether photographs or videos were taken, and whether the meter was sealed in front of the consumer. A bill built on a careless inspection report is often the weakest part of the discom's case.

How to contest an electricity bill or assessment

1. Pay what is clearly due

   Pay the undisputed part of the bill or the amount required to avoid disconnection, under protest in writing. This protects supply and shows good faith without accepting the disputed amount.

2. Collect the records

   Ask the discom in writing for the meter reading history, meter change and test reports, the inspection report, seizure memo and the calculation sheet. Under section 56(2), check whether old arrears were shown continuously in the bills.

3. File a written complaint or objection

   For a billing dispute, file with the discom's grievance cell and then the CGRF. For a provisional assessment, file objections within the time stated in the notice and ask for a personal hearing.

4. Attend the hearing with evidence

   Bring documents such as property tax records showing residential use, load test reports, photographs, and witnesses if needed. Ask for a copy of everything the officer relies on.

5. Appeal on time

   Take an adverse CGRF order to the Ombudsman, or an adverse final assessment to the section 127 appellate authority with the half deposit, within the time set by the regulations or the Act.

6. Consider the High Court for illegality

   Where the discom acts without jurisdiction, ignores the procedure in the Act or disconnects despite a stay, a writ petition may be appropriate. This is for clear illegality, not ordinary disagreements about the bill.

Keep copies of every payment receipt, letter and order. In electricity cases the paper trail is usually more important than the arguments.

Documents for electricity disputes

Disconnection, old arrears and transfer of dues

Disconnection without the 15 days' notice required by section 56, or for an amount that is genuinely disputed and under adjudication, is frequently challenged before the CGRF and, where urgent, before the High Court. Restoring supply quickly usually means depositing the amount the forum or court directs and arguing the rest later.

Old arrears are a common source of conflict. Under section 56(2), an amount is not recoverable after two years from when it first became due unless it was shown continuously as recoverable arrears. Discoms sometimes raise supplementary bills for past periods after an audit or meter check, and the two-year bar, read with the date of the discom's mistake and when it was discovered, often decides how much survives.

Buyers and new tenants are often asked to clear the previous occupier's dues before getting a connection. State supply codes generally allow the licensee to recover unpaid dues attached to the premises in some circumstances, especially on transfer of ownership, so a buyer of a flat, shop or factory should get a no-dues certificate from the discom before completing the purchase. This is a routine item in property due diligence, and it is cheaper to check than to litigate.

How the answer changes by type of connection

For a flat in a group housing society, the connection may be individual, or the society or builder may hold a single point bulk connection and recharge residents through prepaid meters. Disputes about the rate charged by the builder or RWA, the back-up charges and the fixed charges depend on the state's single point supply rules and the maintenance agreement, and may go to the regulatory commission, the consumer commission or, against a promoter before handover, to RERA.

For shops, offices and factories, the usual issues are the tariff category, the maximum demand and power factor charges, load violations, and assessment under section 126 for use outside the sanctioned category. For agricultural connections, metering, subsidy and supply hours are typical. For rooftop solar consumers, net metering, export credit and delays in commissioning are increasingly common grievances.

Large industrial users, captive generators and open access consumers deal with cross-subsidy surcharge, additional surcharge, banking and wheeling charges, renewable purchase obligations and green energy open access. Those are commission matters rather than CGRF matters, and they turn on the regulations and tariff orders in force for the relevant year.

Petitions before the regulatory commissions

The State Electricity Regulatory Commission, such as DERC in Delhi, UPERC in Uttar Pradesh and HERC in Haryana, determines tariffs, grants licences, approves power purchase, frames supply codes and adjudicates disputes between licensees and generating companies under section 86(1)(f). Petitions are filed in the format set by the commission's conduct of business regulations, with a fee, an affidavit and service on the affected parties. The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission performs the same role for inter-state generation, transmission and trading.

Generator and licensee disputes usually concern unpaid invoices, late payment surcharge, change in law claims, curtailment, deemed generation, termination of power purchase agreements and compensation. The Supreme Court has long held that such disputes fall within the commission's jurisdiction, and the commission may decide them itself or refer them to arbitration. A private arbitration clause in a power purchase agreement therefore does not always settle where the dispute goes.

Consumers and consumer groups also take part in tariff proceedings by filing objections when the discom's annual revenue requirement petition is published. Those objections rarely change the outcome alone, but they are part of the record that APTEL later examines.

Appeals to APTEL and the Supreme Court

The Appellate Tribunal for Electricity sits in New Delhi and hears appeals against orders of the Central Commission, State Commissions and adjudicating officers under section 111. The appeal must be filed within 45 days of receiving the order, and the tribunal can condone delay for sufficient cause. APTEL also hears appeals under the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board Act 2006.

An APTEL appeal is a full appeal on facts and law, and the tribunal can set aside or modify the commission's order, remand it, or pass interim orders such as stay of a tariff component or of recovery. Hearings involve tariff calculations, regulatory accounts and long compilations, so the appeal memo needs a clear list of dates and a precise statement of each issue.

Section 125 allows an appeal to the Supreme Court within 60 days of APTEL's decision, on the grounds in section 100 of the CPC, which means a substantial question of law. These appeals need an Advocate-on-Record, as explained on our page on Supreme Court cases. Writ petitions to the Delhi High Court are generally not entertained against commission orders where APTEL is available, except in cases of clear lack of jurisdiction.

Mistakes that cost money in electricity disputes

• Not paying anything. Refusing to pay even the undisputed amount invites disconnection and makes the consumer look unreasonable before every forum.
• Signing the inspection report without reading it. A signed report recording a high connected load or tampering is hard to dispute later. Write any disagreement on the report itself before signing.
• Going to the consumer commission for a theft assessment. After Anis Ahmad, consumer commissions cannot hear challenges to section 126 or 135 action, and the time spent there is lost.
• Filing a civil suit. Section 145 bars civil courts from matters that assessing and appellate officers decide.
• Missing the section 127 or APTEL deadline. Thirty days for a section 127 appeal and 45 days for APTEL pass quickly while parties negotiate.
• Ignoring the two-year rule. Old arrears that were not shown continuously in bills may not be recoverable, but only if the point is raised.

Costs, time and what to do this week

CGRF and Ombudsman proceedings are inexpensive and many consumers handle them alone, though a properly prepared complaint helps. Assessment appeals require the statutory deposit, which is often the largest immediate cost. Commission and APTEL matters involve filing fees prescribed by the regulations, technical analysis and lengthy hearings, and costs depend on the complexity of the tariff or contract issue. Contract disputes in the power sector also interact with commercial litigation and MSME payment claims.

This week, collect your last two years of bills and every notice or report from the discom. Write down the date you received any provisional or final assessment, because the time for objections and appeals runs from it. Pay the undisputed amount under protest, and file a written complaint or objection rather than relying on visits to the sub-division office. If the discom is not responding, a short legal notice often brings a written reply that can then be taken to the forum.

If you want the papers checked before you act, the team of Advocate B.K. Singh at Legals365 can review them and tell you the next step: talk to a lawyer.

Frequently asked questions

Where do I complain about a wrong electricity bill?

First to the distribution company's grievance cell in writing, then to the Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum if it is not resolved. If you are not satisfied with the CGRF, you can approach the Electricity Ombudsman. A consumer commission is also available for deficiency in service.

What is the CGRF in electricity cases?

The Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum is set up by every distribution licensee under section 42(5) of the Electricity Act to decide consumer grievances such as billing, metering, connection and disconnection. Its composition and procedure are governed by the Electricity (Rights of Consumers) Rules 2020 and state regulations.

How do I appeal against an electricity theft assessment?

For unauthorised use under section 126, file objections to the provisional assessment and then appeal the final assessment under section 127 after depositing half the amount. For theft under section 135, the civil liability and the criminal case are contested separately, and the consumer commission cannot hear the matter.

Can the discom disconnect my supply without notice?

For non-payment, section 56 requires at least 15 clear days' written notice. In theft cases detected on inspection, the licensee can disconnect immediately under section 135. Supply must be restored when the consumer pays under protest or deposits the amount directed.

Can the discom recover electricity dues older than two years?

Under section 56(2), dues cannot be recovered after two years from when they first became due unless they were shown continuously as recoverable arrears. Whether a supplementary bill for a past period is time-barred depends on when the amount became due and was first billed.

Can I go to the consumer court for an electricity problem?

Yes, for ordinary deficiency in service such as wrong billing, delayed connection or wrongful disconnection. No, for challenges to section 126 assessments or action for theft, which must follow the Electricity Act's own procedure.

What does APTEL decide?

The Appellate Tribunal for Electricity in New Delhi hears appeals against orders of the Central and State Electricity Regulatory Commissions and adjudicating officers. It also hears appeals under the PNGRB Act. Its decisions can be appealed to the Supreme Court on a substantial question of law.

What is the time limit for an appeal to APTEL?

Forty-five days from the date the appellant receives the commission's order, under section 111 of the Electricity Act. APTEL can admit a late appeal if sufficient cause is shown.

Do I have to pay the previous owner's electricity dues when I buy a property?

Discoms often refuse a new connection or name transfer until dues attached to the premises are cleared, and state supply codes generally support recovery in some situations. Get a no-dues certificate from the discom before completing the purchase.

Can I file a civil suit to stop an electricity assessment?

Generally no. Section 145 of the Electricity Act bars civil courts from matters that assessing officers and appellate authorities decide. The remedy is objections and a section 127 appeal, or a writ petition for clear illegality.

Who decides disputes between a power generator and a discom?

The State Electricity Regulatory Commission under section 86(1)(f), or the Central Commission under section 79(1)(f) for inter-state matters. The commission can decide the dispute itself or refer it to arbitration, and its order can be appealed to APTEL.

What should I do if inspectors find a problem at my premises?

Read the inspection report before signing and note any disagreement on it. Ask for copies of the report, the seizure memo and photographs. Then file written objections to any provisional assessment within the time stated.