After A Year-Long Battle, Centre Permits Electricity Connection To Pakistani Hindu Refugees In Delhi

In a statement addressed to the Delhi High Court on Thursday, the union government approved the installation of electricity connection for Hindu refugees from Pakistan who have been living in north Delhi's Adarsh Nagar since 2013. The court has now directed Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited (TPDDL) to provide electricity to the area within a month.

Central government counsel Anuraj Alhuwalia informed the bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad that the Ministry of Defence, in a letter dated November 7, has granted permission to provide electricity connection to the residents considering the human issues involved in this matter. The Hindu refugees are staying on land that comes under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Defence.

Petition Filed By Social Worker

Hariom Sahoo, a social worker who works for the welfare of minority migrants from the neighbouring countries of Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, filed a petition last year seeking help for providing electricity to the refugees. It stated that over 200 migrant families from Pakistan were taking shelter in Adarsh Nagar and were living without any electricity, which raised the issue of human rights.

According to the plea, Hariom requested electricity connection for the residents of the area based on their Aadhaar cards, long-term visa and passports under the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (Supply Code and Performance Standards) Regulations, 2017. He added a request to include an Aadhaar card as proof of occupancy and the other documents as proof of identity.

Consider Plight Of Hindu Migrants: HC

Issuing an order to the central government, Delhi High Court, on September 6, had asked the government to "sympathetically look into the plight of Hindu migrants from Pakistan living without electricity at a slum in the city's Adarsh Nagar area", Hindustan Times reported.

The court stated in its order that the migrants came to India from Pakistan on long-term visas, but were economically challenged, without a permanent place of residence, and possessed Aadhaar cards. Consequently, the central government granted the approval for an electricity connection in the area.

The petition has now been disposed of by the court, stating, "In view of the aforesaid, the present PIL shall stand disposed of with a direction to Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited (TPDDL) to provide electricity connection to the residents within 30 days."

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