(1) The Appropriate Commission shall, for the purposes of any inquiry or proceedings under this Act, have the same powers as are vested in a civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure (5 of 1908) in respect of the following matters, namely:—
(a) summoning and enforcing the attendance of any person and examining him on oath;
(b) discovery and production of any document or other material object producible as evidence;
(c) receiving evidence on affidavits;
(d) requisitioning of any public record or copy thereof from any court or office;
(e) issuing commissions for the examination of witnesses or documents;
(f) reviewing its decisions, directions and orders;
(g) any other matter which may be prescribed.
(2) The Appropriate Commission shall have the powers to pass such interim order in any proceeding, hearing or matter before the Appropriate Commission as that Commission may consider appropriate.
(3) The Appropriate Commission may authorise any person, as it deems fit, to represent the interest of the consumers in the proceedings before it.
Legal Commentary & Landmark Judgments: Section 94
Section 94 of the Act equips the Appropriate Commission with the powers of a civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, empowering it to summon witnesses, enforce discovery, receive affidavit evidence, and pass interim injunctions.
In urgent PPA termination or bank guarantee encashment disputes, file an interlocutory application under Section 94(2) praying for an ex-parte ad-interim stay; the Commission possesses full civil court authority to restrain encashment pending final hearing.