Telecom's question of fair play

How the Union government reacts to the latest Supreme Court order linked to adjusted gross revenue (AGR) of Vodafone Idea (Vi) could throw up many questions.

- NIVEDITA MOOKERJI

How the Union government reacts to the latest Supreme Court order linked to adjusted gross revenue (AGR) of Vodafone Idea (Vi) could throw up many questions.

Earlier this week, the apex court allowed the Centre to reexamine Vi’s entire AGR dues up to financial year 2016-17. This was a modification of an order issued on October 27 that had focused only on an additional demand of %9,450 crore.

The subsequent order of November 3 has widened the scope of relief for the struggling telco manifold. And this leads us to the question how the Union government, which holds a 49 per cent stake in Vi, would act now.

Will the government waive the AGR dues, which are currently pegged at %83,400 crore, of the stressed telco in “public interest”? Will the government pick up an additional stake in Vi, in lieu of its financial liability, and become a majority owner in the telecom company that’s a joint venture of the Aditya Birla Group and UK-based Vodafone?

Also, how will the government deal with Bharti Airtel’s plea seeking relief on its AGR dues, which stands at around %38,604 crore? The other major telecom player, Reliance Jio, does not have any pending AGR dues as it started its operations only in September 2016.