Taking a stand on the 2G spectrum issue, the Supreme Court has passed three major judgments which are expected to impact the telecom sector, mobile customers and the government significantly.
In a major setback to several telecom players, the SC has revoked 122 licenses issued under A Raja’s tenure. This includes 21 licences of Videocon, 22 licences of Uninor, 9 of Idea Cellular, 3 of Tata Teleservices Limited, 21 of Loop, 6 of S-Tel, 21 of SSTL, 15 of Etisalat and 4 of Spice.
These licences were granted after January 2008 and are being cancelled for being outside the eligibility criteria for allocation of 2G spectrum.
Meanwhile, the court has asked the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) to frame guidelines for the allocation of new licences.
Licence cancellation apart, these operators are also required to pay heavy penalties. The Supreme Court has imposed a penalty of Rs 50 million each on Unitech Wireless (Uninor), Swan Telecom and TTSL, while Loop, STel, Allianz and Sistema Shyam Teleservices Limited has been fined Rs 5 million each.
The SC?s decision has been met with dismay from the operators facing licence cancellation. Uninor, for instance, issued a statement saying that it has been ?unfairly treated? and that it plans to examine the order in detail and exercise all options to ensure that it can still operate in the country.
Regarding the issue of P. Chidambaram?s alleged involvement in the 2G spectrum case, the court has asked the Central Bureau of Investigation?s special court to hear the matter. The CBI Court is expected to pass a judgment on this issue on February 4, 2012. The court?s decision will determine whether Chidambaram will be made a co-accused in the case.
The SC has also refused to sanction a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to oversee the CBI?s scrutiny of the 2G spectrum case. Instead, the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) has been asked to monitor the investigation.
