SC Rejects Vodafone Idea, Airtel Petitions on AGR Relief
The Supreme Court decided on Monday to reject the pleas of Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel asking for a reduction in interest on the AGR payments they should make. The judges on the bench, Justices J.B. Pardiwala and R. Mahadevan, said the appeals from the telecommunications companies were “misconceived” and “shocking.”
To avoid the possibility of closing, Vodafone Idea turned to the Supreme Court with a request for Rs 45,000 crore of AGR relief. Regardless of having its dues converted into shares valued at around Rs 39,000 crore by the government, the telecom operator is still left with close to Rs 1.19 lakh crore in total spectrum and AGR fees to pay.
Also, Bharti Airtel and its subsidiary Bharti Hexacom asked the court to waive the interest and penalties of Rs 34,745 crore related to AGR dues, as they believed it was fair. In response to the earlier appeal for a delay, the Department of Telecommunications pointed out the Supreme Court’s 2020 judgment which ruled that telecom operators would pay a total of Rs 93,520 crore in AGR dues within ten years.
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The court previously ruled in 2019 over the formula used to calculate AGR and later in 2020 rejected proposals asking for tax payments to be paid for up to 20 years. After the news, Vodafone Idea’s shares fell nearly 9% to Rs 6.70.
