Chandigarh power crisis: Staff found guilty to be dealt with strictly, Admn tells Punjab and Haryana High Court

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 3

Just about a week after the Punjab and Haryana High Court virtually rapped the UT Administration for shift in its stance, perhaps to shield the culprits involved in electricity supply disruption, the Deputy Commissioner today told the Bench that all employees found guilty after investigation and SIT reports would “be strictly dealt with as per law”.

In an affidavit placed before the Bench of Chief Justice Ravi Shanker Jha and Justice Arun Palli, UT Deputy Commissioner Vinay Pratap Singh submitted the UT Administration was standing by the affidavit submitted by the Chief Engineer on February 23 and would not leave any stone unturned to elicit the true facts, ascertain/quantify the damages and recover the same from the guilty.

The Deputy Commissioner added that he had due regard for the orders and directions passed by the High Court and at no point of time could even try to or intent to overreach the court. He added that the Administration, on February 22, invoked the East Punjab Essential Services (Maintenance) Act to prohibit the ongoing strike. An order, dated February 22, was passed vide which the employees on strike were ordered to join their duties. However, 143 employees failed to join the services even on February 23, following which the electricity wing of the Engineering Department initiated disciplinary action against the delinquent employees. The services of 17 employees were terminated with immediate effect and disciplinary action was initiated against 126 employees.

It was added that the call details of mobile phones allegedly used by leaders were being obtained and would be scrutinised to examine their role in the strike. The Administration had also constituted a special investigation team to investigate the FIR, dated February 23

The matter was brought to the notice of the High Court after Brig Raj Baksh Singh filed a petition in public interest through counsel Jatin Bansal against the UT Administration and other respondents. A High Court Bench also took suo motu cognisance of the power crisis in the city following the strike by the powermen. Senior advocate Chetan Mittal and Arjun Atma Ram were appointed as amicus curiae by the Bench.

The High Court, during the course of the hearing, virtually admonished the powermen union. The Bench asserted that they blackmailed the Administration in a way by going on strike. The Bench also asked the union to give an undertaking that they would not go on such a strike again. Mittal also raised the issue of a backup plan if the employees went on strike again in the future.

The High Court also recorded an undertaking from the union that they would not go on strike again and would not interfere in the departmental action. Bansal submitted that the UT was trying to isolate the strike incident from the real issue. The actual issue in hand stemmed from the grievance of the union members by the acts of privatisation. Bansal added that the PIL pertained to the residents’ right to continuous power supply and the UT Administration’s responsibility to ensure the same without any disruptions. Before parting, the Bench asked the Deputy Commissioner to submit details of measures being taken now to ascertain non-repetition of such events. Details of the backup plans was also called for.

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