Congress evading White Paper on power purchase pacts by SAD govt

Rajmeet Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 28

Despite alleging irregularities in the signing of the power purchase agreements (PPAs) with private thermal plants by the previous SAD-BJP government, the Congress government seems to be fighting shy of bringing a White Paper on the controversial agreements even after four years of coming to power.

In the 2017 Assembly poll manifesto, the party had promised to renegotiate the PPAs to ensure low cost power for consumers and name those responsible for the agreements.

“Instead of renegotiating the PPAs to bring down the power rates, the power tariff has gone up. Congress MLAs are expressing concern over the issue as the party braces up to face people in the 2022 Assembly polls,” said a Cabinet minister.

An effort to push a draft of the White Paper at a Cabinet meeting during the recently held Budget Session did not find favour with some ministers, who insisted on naming the “vested interests” behind the PPAs.

Later, a draft of the White Paper tabled in the Cabinet Sub-Committee meeting was rejected by two Cabinet ministers Sukhjinder Randhawa and Tript Rajinder Bajwa, who apparently again insisted on exposing those behind the agreements.

Incidentally, the CM during a recent press conference to mark four years of the Congress government in the state had stated that the PPAs were legal documents and it was difficult to touch them.

Sources said that by insisting on naming the officials who were instrumental in preparing the PPAs, the government would achieve little by way of targeting Akalis, as the officials who prepared the PPAs are also part of the White Paper drafting team.

“If the PPAs are watertight documents and there’s nothing on record to prove the Akalis’ complicity in the matter, the party leadership will find it hard to build a political narrative against them,” said the sources.

During the previous SAD-BJP government, PPAs were signed regarding the payment of fixed charges to three power plants.

Congress leaders maintain that the PPAs should have stated that the state would purchase as much power as was required. PPCC chief Sunil Jakhar said, “I believe the government is working on the legal framework to bring out the White Paper. I still believe the government should move the Supreme Court over the PPAs.”