New Delhi, Feb 11 (IANS): Delhi L-G V.K. Saxena has ordered the removal of AAP spokesperson Jasmine Shah and Naveen ND Gupta as well as a few others who had been "illegally appointed as government nominees" on the board of privately-owned DISCOMS -- BYPL, BRPL (Anil Ambani) and NDPDCL (Tata).

"Finance Secretary, Power Secretary and MD, Delhi Transco will now represent the government on these Ambani and Tata owned DISCOMS, as per regular practice, followed since Sheila Dikshit's time as Chief Minister, when these DISCOMS came into existence," the L-G Secretariat said in a statement.

"They had collaborated with private representatives on boards of the Anil Ambani owned DISCOMS and benefitted them to the tune of Rs 8,000 Cr at the cost of public excheqer," it added.

Invoking 'difference of opinion' under Article 239AA of the Constitution, after the Arvind Kejriwal government persisted upon their continuance on these boards, despite proven misconduct and maleficience on their part, by way of benefiting the Anil Ambani owned DISCOMS to the tune of more than Rs 8000 crore at the cost of government excheqer, Saxena had referred the matter to the President of India for a decision.

He had asked for the removal of the above mentioned political appointees on the DISCOMS boards with immediate effect, pending the President's decision, and asked for senior government officials to replace them on the boards of the DISCOMS.

The Delhi government which owns 49 per cent of stake in the private DISCOMS used to nominate senior government officials so that the interests of the government and people of Delhi could be taken care of, in decisions taken by the DISCOMS boards.

"However, these AAP nominees on the DISCOMS, in a quid pro quo arrangement involving commissions and kickbacks, instead of acting vigilant in interest of the people and government of Delhi, acted in cahoots with the BRPL and BYPL boards facilitated a decision by their boards to decrease the LPSC rates from 18 per cent to 12 per cent, and in the process unduly benefitted them to the tune of Rs 8,468 crore -- an amount that would have gone to the Delhi government excheqer," reads the statement from the L-G Secretariat.