# Got a gas detection bill? Is the company's bill final? > No. A detection bill (a bill for gas the company says was stolen) has to be proved. The Supreme Court held that a calculation sheet "cannot be considered as the gospel truth" unless the raiding team checked the actual load from the appliances really in use and confronted the consumer at the time of the raid (2024 SCMR 122, para 9). - Topic: Consumer rights - Court: Supreme Court of Pakistan - Citation: 2024 SCMR 122 - The myth: "The company's detection bill is final: you just have to pay it." Verdict: Wrong. - Watch: https://failegal.site/media/gas-detection-bill-pakistan-2024-scmr-122 (video https://failegal.site/media/gas-detection-bill-pakistan-2024-scmr-122/reel.mp4, 1:16) - Published by FAI Legal on 2026-10-31 In that case the gas company found a meter tampered with and charged more than Rs 12 lakh on a calculation sheet. No one listed the appliances. The Gas Utility Court set the bill aside, the High Court and the Supreme Court left that in place, and the consumer paid only the cost of the meter (paras 2, 6, 8 and 10). ## Key points - A detection bill is not final. "Merely submitting the calculation sheet of the dues on account of alleged pilferage was not sufficient" (2024 SCMR 122, para 9). - OGRA's procedure says the connected load is based on the appliances actually installed, assessed by a three-member committee from Engineering, Sales and Billing (para 7). - The period charged for a meter tampering case is capped at 12 months, and for homes the season's consumption counts (para 7). - The company's review committee hears the consumer's appeal, and the consumer has the right to be present (para 7). The Gas Utility Court hears the case in court (paras 2 and 3). - Tampering with a gas meter is itself a crime: up to six months or a fine up to Rs 1,00,000 for a domestic consumer (PPC s.462-D). ## Detection bill kya hai, and is it final? The short answer A detection bill is what people call the extra bill a gas or power company sends when it says the meter was tampered with or gas was used without being billed. It is a claim, not a court decree. In 2024 SCMR 122, decided on 20 September 2023, the Supreme Court said: "Merely submitting the calculation sheet of the dues on account of alleged pilferage was not sufficient". The company has to prove how it worked out the amount (para 9, relying on Article 117 of the Qanun-e-Shahadat Order 1984: whoever asserts a fact must prove it). ## Rawalpindi, 2012: what happened Sui Northern Gas inspected a consumer's meter in Rawalpindi; its meter inspection report of 22 November 2012 said the meter was tampered with. Its assessment committee then worked out pilferage charges of Rs 12,36,212 on a calculation sheet (para 6). The consumer sued in the Gas Utility Court, Rawalpindi, saying the bill was wrongly calculated. On 19 June 2017 the court set the bill aside, but held that the company could recover the cost of the meter (para 2). The Lahore High Court, Rawalpindi Bench, dismissed the company's appeal on 16 November 2020 (para 1). ## What the Supreme Court decided in September 2023 A bench of Yahya Afridi, Sayyed Mazahar Ali Akbar Naqvi and Muhammad Ali Mazhar, JJ heard the company's petition on 20 September 2023. The judgment, by Muhammad Ali Mazhar, J, refused leave to appeal and dismissed the petition (para 10). The Court set out OGRA's 2005 "Procedure for Dealing with Theft of Gas". In a meter tampering case, the gas stolen is assessed on several factors. One is the connected load: "connected load shall be based on appliances actually installed and taking load of each in comparison to predetermined load of each appliance", assessed by a committee of one member each from Engineering, Sales and Billing (para 7). Here, "No inventory of the appliances was produced, if any, prepared by the Raiding Team" (para 8). The Court held that a calculation sheet "cannot be considered as the gospel truth unless the raiding team ascertained the actual load and consumption according to the appliances and equipment being used by the subscriber and confronted the subscriber" (para 9). ## The bill cancelled, but the meter paid for The trial court found that the connected load was never checked at the site, so the committee had nothing to base its figure on, and set the bill aside (para 6). That decision stood. The ruling did not clear the meter. The meter inspection report showed it was tampered with, so the consumer was directed to pay the cost of the meter (paras 2 and 6). The case is about how the amount is proved, not a licence to touch a meter. ## Gas bill jyada aaye to kya kare: what to do Ask the company how it worked out the amount: which appliances it counted, over how many months, and whether a committee assessed the load at your premises. OGRA's procedure caps the period at 12 months and, for homes, says the record alone is not enough because weather changes use (para 7). Appeal to the company's review committee. OGRA's procedure sets up an in-house committee headed by a Senior General Manager to hear consumers charged for gas theft: "The alleged consumer shall have the right to be present before the review committee for presentation of his case" (para 7). The Gas Utility Court is the court that heard this consumer's case (para 2). Never touch the meter. Tampering with a gas meter by a domestic consumer is punishable with imprisonment up to six months, a fine up to Rs 1,00,000, or both (PPC s.462-D); for an industrial or commercial consumer, five to ten years, a fine up to Rs 50 lakh, or both (PPC s.462-E). ## For law students and lawyers The company's appeal was filed under section 13 of the Gas (Theft Control and Recovery) Act 2016, which gives an appeal to the High Court within 30 days from a Gas Utility Court's judgment (para 3). The High Court also went into the merits, so the Supreme Court did not remand on the notice point (para 5). The burden point is the core of the ruling: under Article 117 of the Qanun-e-Shahadat Order 1984 the party that asserts the liability must prove it, and a calculation sheet without the load assessment the procedure requires does not discharge that burden (para 9). ## The case at a glance - **Facts:** The gas company found a consumer's meter tampered with (report of 22 November 2012) and charged Rs 12,36,212 on a calculation sheet. No inventory of appliances was made. - **The question:** Could the company recover the pilferage charges on its calculation sheet alone? - **What the Court held:** No. The Gas Utility Court's decree setting the bill aside stood; leave was refused (20 September 2023). The consumer pays the cost of the meter. - **Why:** OGRA's 2005 procedure requires the connected load to be assessed from the appliances actually installed (para 7); none were listed (para 8); the party asserting liability must prove it (Article 117, QSO), and a calculation sheet is not the gospel truth (para 9). - **Limits:** The ruling is about proving the amount of a detection bill. It did not hold that the meter was not tampered with; the consumer was made to pay the meter's cost. ## In the Court’s words > "In case of domestic consumers, the available record alone shall not form basis of recovery" (2024 SCMR 122, para 7, item 9 of OGRA's procedure) ## The law it relies on - **Pakistan Penal Code, 1860, Section 462-D:** Tampering with a gas meter, regulator, meter index or connection by a domestic consumer: imprisonment up to six months, or a fine up to Rs 1,00,000, or both. - **Pakistan Penal Code, 1860, Section 462-E:** The same by an industrial or commercial consumer: imprisonment of five to ten years, or a fine up to five million rupees, or both. ## What this does not mean - It does not say gas companies cannot send detection bills. It says the amount must be worked out the way the procedure requires and proved. - It does not excuse tampering. The meter was found tampered with, and the consumer paid for the meter. - It does not decide electricity bills. The case was about gas under OGRA's procedure; power companies have their own rules. - It does not set any amount or formula for your bill. Each case turns on its own evidence. ## Questions people ask ### Detection bill kya hai? It is the extra bill a gas or power company sends when it says gas or power was used without being billed, for example through a tampered meter. It is a claim the company has to prove, not a final order (2024 SCMR 122, para 9). ### Is a gas detection bill final? No. The Supreme Court held that a calculation sheet is not the gospel truth unless the raiding team checked the actual load and confronted the consumer (2024 SCMR 122, para 9). ### Where can I complain about a gas detection bill? To the company's review committee, which OGRA's procedure sets up for consumers charged with gas theft; you have the right to be present (para 7). The consumer in this case took it to the Gas Utility Court (para 2). ### What is the punishment for gas meter tampering in Pakistan? For a domestic consumer, imprisonment up to six months, a fine up to Rs 1,00,000, or both (PPC s.462-D). For an industrial or commercial consumer, five to ten years, a fine up to five million rupees, or both (PPC s.462-E). ### For how many months can a detection bill be charged? OGRA's procedure, as quoted by the Supreme Court, says the suspected period shall not exceed 12 months (2024 SCMR 122, para 7). ### Gas bill jyada aaye to kya kare? Company se poochein ke kaun se appliances gine gaye aur kitne mahine ka bill hai. Review committee mein appeal karein. Meter ko kabhi haath na lagayein: yeh khud jurm hai (PPC 462-D). ## Sources - Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited v. Muhammad Arshad, 2024 SCMR 122, Supreme Court of Pakistan, 20 September 2023, paras 1 to 10. A calculation sheet is not the gospel truth unless the actual load was ascertained from the appliances in use and the consumer confronted; OGRA's 2005 procedure; the bill set aside, the meter's cost recoverable. (verified against full text) - Pakistan Penal Code, 1860, Sections 462-D and 462-E (text checked in FAI Statute Search, 31 October 2026) (official text: https://pakistancode.gov.pk/english/UY2FqaJw1-apaUY2Fqa-apaUY2Npa5lo-sg-jjjjjjjjjjjjj) ## What the reel says Got a gas detection bill? Is the company's bill final? Detection bill kya hai, and what to do when the gas bill is too high. People say: the company's bill is final, you just have to pay. Wrong. Rawalpindi, 2012: the gas company said the meter had been tampered with and charged over Rs 12 lakh on a calculation sheet. The man went to the Gas Utility Court. In September 2023 the Supreme Court said a calculation sheet "cannot be considered as the gospel truth" unless the raiding team checked the actual load from the appliances in use and confronted the consumer. No list of appliances was made, so the bill stayed cancelled. But the meter had been tampered with, so he paid for the meter (2024 SCMR 122). What to do: 1. Ask: which appliances did they count, and for how many months? 2. Go to the company's review committee, or the Gas Utility Court. 3. Never touch the meter: that is a crime in itself (PPC s.462-D). --- Educational legal information, not legal advice. Every case turns on its own facts. Speak to a lawyer about your own matter. Last checked: 31 October 2026. Review status: Pending advocate review. English: https://failegal.site/media/gas-detection-bill-pakistan-2024-scmr-122 · Urdu: https://failegal.site/media/ur/gas-detection-bill-pakistan-2024-scmr-122 FAI Media is part of FAI Legal (https://failegal.site), research on Pakistani statutes and judgments. Free to watch and read.