Old GSM players caused substantial losses to the exchequer: Syed Safawi, President, Wireless, RCOM

Reliance Communications (RCOM) has reiterated that it had violated no norms, as its own and the group’s equity holding in Swan Telecom, now under probe in the 2G spectrum issue, did not exceed 9.9 percent.

The company also said it obtained a dual technology license under the same terms that applied to Tata Teleservices Limited, Himachal Futuristic Communications Limited (HFCL) and Shyam Telecom.

Syed Safawi, president, wireless, Reliance Communications, in a statement, said the company’s holding in Swan Telecom was also duly disclosed to all the concerned agencies and departments, including the Comptroller and Auditor General of India and the Department of Telecommunications (DoT).

On dual technology, Safawi said the grant was based on the recommendation of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India after due public consultation, which was also approved by the government. He added that the grant of dual technology approval to RCOM in October 2007 has also been upheld by the Delhi High Court by a judgment in August 2008.

The company also said the probe being carried out by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on the 2G spectrum issue on the orders of the Supreme Court covered a large number of telecom companies and their officials across the country. He added that contrary to media positioning, investigations by the CBI and other authorities were not specific to RCOM executives, and instead, have reportedly covered more than 50 people from across a large number of telecom operators.

Safawi also alleged that old 2G telecom operators had caused the exchequer losses worth Rs 1 trillion by fraudulent misrepresentation and concealment of material facts from the government. He added that several of these 2G operators had also secured the most valuable original eight licenses in Mumbai, Delhi, Calcutta and Chennai in 1994-95, on a nominated basis without any auction and by nearly zero payment of license fees.

The company, he said, in the interests of a level playing field, fairness, equity and transparency, looked forward to the completion of investigations by the CBI, covering all these aspects of the 2G telecom regime in India. He added that RCOM also looked forward to the probe agency identifying the real beneficiaries, who by fraudulently misleading the government and connivance with certain officials, caused these losses and amassed substantial wealth.