Kangana Ranaut's electricity bill not Rs 1 lakh, it includes arrears and high consumption: HPSEBL MD

Amid a growing controversy surrounding Bollywood actress and BJP Mandi parliamentary constituency MP Kangana Ranaut's electricity bill, the Himachal Pradesh Electricity Board Limited (HPSEBL) has issued a clarification.

Speaking to ANI, Sandeep Kumar, the Managing Director of HPSEBL, addressed Kangana Ranaut's alleged inflated power bill.

"Kangana Ranaut, the Member of Parliament from Mandi parliamentary constituency, had raised an issue in the media, claiming that the electricity board had sent her a bill of Rs 1 lakh. I would like to clarify that the bill was not of Rs 1 lakh but Rs 91,000 and some hundred rupees," Kumar stated.

He further explained that the amount in question was not a single month's bill but a cumulative amount covering multiple billing cycles and arrears. According to Kumar, Kangana cleared her November and December bills only on January 16, and she had not paid her January and February bills either. The 20-day billing cycle of March had already passed by the time the bill was generated.

"There is an arrear of approximately Rs 31,000 to Rs 32,000, and her bill for 28 days of March alone was around Rs 55,000. Together with other charges, the total came to around Rs 91,000," he added. He emphasised that had the payments been made on time, the amount would not have appeared as high.

Kumar also clarified that no one from Kangana's side had approached the electricity board directly before the issue was raised publicly. "Neither did anyone confidentially inquire from us, nor did we release any statement until now. We have since issued a press note to clarify the situation, Kumar said.

Importantly, the board confirmed that Kangana also received a subsidy of Rs 700, which was applied to her bill, following the regular procedure.

Addressing the technical aspects, Kumar stated that Kangana's connected load is significantly higher than the average domestic user. "Her domestic connection load is 94 kilowatts, which is about 1500% more than the standard domestic meter load."

"In March alone, during 28 days, she consumed around 9,000 units of electricity," he added.

"The power being consumed is at her residence, and this bill pertains solely to that connection. If there are any other connections in her name, I am not aware of them." Kumar said.