Work lean for Bescom sleuths

With four police stations and 30 staffers, they only dealt with 37 cases, mostly of power theft, in May. That’s because consumers don’t know they can complain against corruption, say Bescom vigilance officers

A dedicated vigilance department exists to act against corruption among Bescom staff, but not many consumers are aware of it.

Bescom vigilance department has 11 police stations in Karnataka, four are in Bengaluru — Rajajinagar, Malleswaram, Indiranagar and Jayanagar. They take complaints against harassment of consumers. They have a combined staff of 30.

A Kumaraswamy, superintendent of police, Bescom vigilance, says his staff are on the lookout for power theft and harassment of consumers, and swing into action the moment they get a complaint. “Without a complaint, it is difficult for vigilance to take action,” he told Metrolife.

For four police stations, the cases are low. While 27 cases of power theft were registered in April, the number was 37 in May. Complaints against corrupt staff were seven in April and six in May.

Two Bescom employees were recently suspended for misappropriation of funds. “We have started educating field officers to initiate action against those stealing power. We also act against employees who pocket Bescom money,” says Kumaraswamy.

Across the various police stations, the numbers are minuscule though. The vigilance police station of Indiranagar has received only four cases of power theft last month. R M Yogesh, assistant executive engineer, Bescom, Indiranagar, says the lockdown period did not allow vigilance officers to venture out. Many cases could have gone unreported, he says.

Most cases are against people who take a Bescom connection for domestic use and then use it for construction or business. “We have started work now,” he says.

All cases are registered under Section 135 of the Indian Penal Code. The punishment entails a compounding fee and in some cases a jail term, says Yogesh.

The Rajajinagar Bescom vigilance police station covers areas that come under Mysuru Road, Tumkur Road, and the NICE expressway. Kanche Gowda, inspector, says his station investigates not less than 30 cases from all these places put together of power theft a month.

“If citizens come forward and complain then we are sure the cases will be higher. The Covid-19 crisis has reduced the flow of complaints. A large number of cases are against people drawing power without a meter, using duplicate meters, and doing business on a domestic tariff,” says Gowda.

First-time offenders in power theft cases pay three times the amount and second-time offenders face a penalty and a jail term, he says.

The Malleswaram vigilance police station gets most cases after field visits, says Sadiq Pasha, police inspector.

“It is rare that we receive a written complaint. We usually get complaints on the helpline 1912 or on Bescom’s Mitra app,” he says. Many consumers are not aware that they can file a complaint with vigilance, he concedes.

“We usually survey developing and emerging areas where construction is taking place and detect illegal power tapping,” says Sadiq Pasha, inspector. He says cases related to illegal tapping and harassment of consumers top the list of cases vigilance officials investigate.

Lockdown billing outrage

Using the lockdown as an excuse, Bescom had issued inflated bills earlier this month. Metrolife reported a case where the bill was inflated 16 times the average for a house that was vacant and had not used any power. Consumers harassed by corrupt
staff can complain to vigilance officials.

Consumer complaints

Bescom officials directed the owner of a newly constructed house in Geddalahalli, near Horamavu to pay Rs 30,000 towards development charges citing that the area was still undeveloped. A receipt for the same would be handed over. The local assistant engineer claimed that this was a government-approved charge that was recently increased from Rs 12,000 to Rs 30,000. When the owner said he could not afford the development charges, he was asked to pay a bribe of Rs 10,000, wherein the development charge would be waived off. Another customer in Hebbal was sent from one Bescom office to another to get a new connection. He was later directed to an agent who was to help him speed up the process. The agent demanded an extra charge of Rs 20,000 towards a new connection. And no receipt was provided for the amount paid.

Got a complaint?

You can call Bescom vigilance if you are harassed for bribes by Bescom staff.

Rajajinagar: Inspector Kanche Gowda on 94480 94806

Malleswaram: Inspector Sadiq Pasha on 94480 94805

Jayanagar: Inspector Nagesh on 94480 94818

Indiranagar: R M Yogesh, Bescom on 94480 94821