New Delhi, April 28, 2006

Press Release

BSES Teams implementing High Court appointed Lok Adalat Orders beaten up, and confined

·        Employees and owner of New Bharat Offset – working for leading newspapers of the city beat up BSES recovery teams

·        BSES employees locked in the printing press’ office

·         The printing press was continuously defaulting on pending dues, despite High Court appointed Lok Adalat  orders

It is not uncommon for BSES’ enforcement team members to face resistance and hurdles, while conducting enforcement raids. However, this time the matter was different. BSES recovery and disconnection teams had gone to implement the High Court appointed Lok Adalat’s order. But the venue had something else in store for them – they were manhandled and beaten by the owners and the workers of New Bharat Offset – a leading printing press engaged in printing work for prominent newspapers in the Capital.

BSES recovery and disconnection teams had gone to Rakesh Kumar’s printing press – New Bharat Offset – in Shastri Park to recover their long pending dues. But the teams, which had gone to implement a Lok Adalat order, had to face a very different ground reality – they were beaten up. The point to note is that the owners of the press is a well connected person.

Infact, the printing press owed BSES Rs 5, 32,670 in dues. The matter then reached the Lok Adalat, which reduced the penalty amount to Rs 1, 25,000 and asked the customer to pay the same in four equal instalments of Rs 31, 250 each. But the cheque for very first instalment, to be paid on November 30, 2005, bounced. The customer, in violation of the Lok Adalat orders, kept on alluding payment of his pending dues.

When BSES teams reached the venue for recovering the pending arrears and disconnecting the press’ power supply at 13 A New Lohar Colonies, Shastri Nagar and the linesman climbed the electric pole, the consumer jerked away the ladder – injuring the lineman in the process.

This was not all. More was to follow.  About 25-30 printing press employees surrounded the BSES team members and beat them up and later locked them inside the press building. BSES team members then called PCR van at 100 and only after the arrival of the police, were BSES team members were set free.

Only after this incident, the customer paid Rs 66,260 towards his pending dues to BSES.

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