Gamlin blames Jain for row over comfort letter

Power ( secretary) Shakuntala D. Gamlin has blamed city’s power and health minister Satyendra Jain over the recent controversy over her temporary appointment as the chief secretary of the city. Ms Gamlin was recently given additional charge as acting chief secretary after chief secretary K. K. Sharma took 10- day leave of absence for a trip to the United States.

In her secret letter to lieu- tenant- governor Najeeb Jung, a copy of which has been accessed by this newspaper, Ms Gamlin has raised questions over the timing of the controversy, saying that she had placed all the facts related to a “comfort letter” to power companies to the minister on April 14.

The AAP government had strongly opposed Ms Gamlin’s appointment as the acting chief secretary, alleging she was lobbying for power companies as she was in the process of issuing a comfort letter for discoms to enable them to get a loan from financial institutions.

However, Ms Gamlin’s note said that the need regarding the issuance of the comfort letter for the purpose of facilitating a loan from the Power Finance Corporation- led consortium of institutions and banks to BRPL and BYPL, the two of the three discoms operating in Delhi, had arisen on account of the Supreme Court’s order on February 19, wherein an obligation had been placed on these companies to repay their current dues to the city government and Central power utilities.

Quoting a copy of the secret note of Mr Jain addressed to chief minister Arvind Kejriwal in connection with certain alleged acts of commission and omission said to have been committed by her, Ms Gamlin said the confusion created by the said note regarding the nature and scope of the proposed comfort letter was not supported by facts of the case. “The comfort letter that has been requested for is definitely not in the nature of some kind of guarantee which would have made the GNCTD liable to repay the loan if the companies defaulted any time in the future.”

“Thus, as is self evident, the GNCTD’s role is limited to assisting the PFC in recovery of dues from the two discoms and the same cannot in any manner be stretched to mean that the GNCTD stands as a guarantor for the loan. Even then, on the advice of the minister of power tendered on April 14, 2015, a letter has been addressed to the PFC by way of abundant caution, requesting them to clarify the position. A reply to this letter is awaited,” Ms Gamlin said.