A No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the owner of the premises is not required for a tenant to get a new electricity connection, said the Nagpur bench of Bombay High Court recently.
The high court quashed a communication from Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Ltd. (MSEDCL) asking the petitioner to get an NOC from the owner to get a new electric meter connection.
“Having heard the learned Counsel for the parties and having perused the decision in Dilip (Dead) Through Lrs. (Supreme Court), respondent nos. 2 and 3 (MSEDCL) were not justified in seeking the NOC from the petitioners,” said a division bench of Justices AS Chandurkar and Abhay Mantri on November 6.
The petitioners, M/s. Singh Automobiles, challenged a communication dated January 23, 2023 issued by the MSEDCL which stated that unless they obtained an NOC from the owner, a new electricity connection would not be provided.
Petitioner’s advocate cited Supreme Court judgment
The petitioners informed the HC that there was a compromise decree issued in Special Civil Suit with the mother of the current owner of the property. By the decree, the petitioners were given specific rights in agricultural land and the dealership of petrol pumps linked to the land. The petitioner’s advocate cited a Supreme Court judgment which stated that given the compromise decree, the insistence on procuring an NOC was legally unwarranted, as the petitioner already held rights in the property.
However, the MSEDCL’s advocate contended that an NOC was sought based on legal opinion received by it. He referred to a clause in the Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (Electricity Supply Code and Standards of Performance of Distribution Licensees including Power Quality) Regulations, 2021 which said that an NOC was required for the new electricity connection.
Asking the MSEDCL not to insist on an NOC, the HC said petitioners are entitled to rights in the property as per the compromise decree where the mother of the present owner was a party. “We therefore find that insistence for NOC from the petitioners is not justified. It will only be necessary for respondent nos. 2 and 3 to ensure that the provisions of the Regulations of 2021 in the matter of supply of fresh connection are duly satisfied,” the court said.
