Chandigarh, May 16 -- Former Haryana finance minister Sampat Singh on Friday demanded an inquiry into the Rs.1,300 crore payment made by Haryana power utilities (HPUs) to Sikkim Urja Limited (erstwhile Teesta Urja Ltd) - a power generation company in which Greenko Energies holds a majority stake - without the approval of the chief minister and energy minister, as required under government procedure.

At a briefing, the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) leader said the public ought to know who authorised the payout of Rs.1,300 crore, through which mechanism, on what terms, and why it was executed with such unseemly urgency bypassing the most senior political authority in the energy portfolio.

HT had on March 8 published the story about how a...