SC raps DoT over demanding ₹3L Cr AGR dues from non-telcom PSUs
The Supreme Court on Thursday (June 11) said the demand by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) for Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR) dues of ₹3 lakh crore from non-telecommunication public sector undertakings was “impermissible” and asked the department to withdraw it.
“Outright misuse of our verdict…This is wholly and totally impermissible,” Justice Arun Mishra said.
A bench of justices Arun Mishra, S Abdul Nazeer and MR Shah were hearing a government petition to allow private telcos to pay their AGR dues over 20 years.
Although Solicitor General Tushra Mehta said that the PSUs did not provide mobile services on par with other telcom providers and hence need to be treated differently, the court warning the government of strict action asked it to withdraw the demand notices.
The apex court, said that the DoT should not have raised the issue as its October 24 judgement didn’t mention about it.
The PSU on their part, have maintained that they owe nothing to the government.
The Supreme Court’s decision will be a big relief to companies like GAIL India Ltd, Oil India Ltd, PowerGrid, RailTel and Delhi Metro Rail Corporation.
Related news: SC raps Centre, telcos for self-assessment of AGR dues
The ₹3 lakh crore from PSUs is part of the DoT’s demand of ₹4.7 lakh crore from all companies, both government and private-owned.
In its Thursday hearing, the top court also agreed to the government’s proposal that companies like Vodafone Idea, Bharti Airtel and others can pay ₹93,520 crore of balance dues over the next 20 years.
The court, however, asked what guarantees can be sought to ensure that the companies abide by the timeframe and payment schedule decided by it.
Upholding the DoT’s definition of AGR in its October 24 ruling, the apex court had given the telcos three months to clear their AGR dues. The telcos since have been urging the DoT and the court to either let them pay the AGR in a staggered manner of waive the interest and penalty on interest.