Telecom shares crack; Vodafone Idea plunges 40 per cent

Telecom shares came crashing on Wednesday, led by Vodafone Idea which plunged 40 per cent, after the Supreme Court pulled up the Centre and telcos for doing self-assessment or reassessment of the AGR dues fixed by the apex court.

Vodafone Idea plunged 40 per cent to ₹ 2.91 and Bharti Airtel declined 5 per cent to ₹ 431.25 on the BSE. Both the companies erased their early gains and were trading with losses.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday pulled up the Centre and telecom companies for doing self-assessment or reassessment of the Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR) dues fixed by the apex court in its verdict given on October 24 last year.

The apex court, which was also anguished by frequently published newspaper articles on the AGR issue, said all managing directors of telecom companies will be personally responsible and will be held for contempt of court for any such future newspaper articles.