The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has initiated the process of issuing show-cause notices to operators suspected of suppressing information or providing false information to obtain telecom licences in 2008. Besides, companies who have failed to meet roll-out obligations are also under the scanner.
According to R. Chandrashekhar, chairman, telecom commission and secretary, telecommunications, the DoT expects to complete this process over the next few days. The DoT has served show-cause notices for 119 licences, involving about nine companies. Of these, 81 licences fall under two categories, ineligibility to get licences as well as failing to meet roll-out obligations; while 38 show-cause notices pertain to roll-out obligations alone.
The operators will be given 60 days to respond and each case would be dealt with separately. After studying their response, a decision will be taken on whether their licences need to be cancelled or a penalty be imposed.
According to the Comptroller and Auditor General of India?s (CAG) performance audit report on 2G spectrum allocation, more than 70 per cent of the 122 new licences issued to 13 companies in 2008 were granted to those companies which did not satisfy the eligibility conditions prescribed by the DoT. These include companies like Unitech, Loop Telecom, Videocon and S Tel. CAG stated that while 72 licences were given to companies which did not have the stipulated paid-up capital at the time of application, 27 licences were issued to companies who failed to satisfy conditions of main object clause in their MoA and the share holding pattern declared by one company did not meet the DoT stipulations.
