SC Dismisses Telcos' Plea for AGR Waiver, Says Govt Can Help

Calls Petitions by Vi, Airtel, Tata Tele 'Misconceived'

- BHAVINI MISHRA & SUBHAYAN CHAKRABORTY

The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed the petitions moved by Vodafone Idea (Vi), Bharti Airtel, and Tata Teleservices seeking a waiver on their long-standing adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues.

The telcos were looking for relief related to payment of interest, penalty, and interest on penalty components as part of their AGR dues.

Calling the plea "misconceived", a Bench of Justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan said if the Centre decided to extend relief to these companies, the court would not obstruct such a move.

"If the government wants to help you, we are not coming in the way," Pardiwala said.

Experts believe the latest ruling could have severe implications for the already struggling Vodafone Idea (Vi).

The telco had recently said it would not be able to survive beyond FY26 without relief.

It could even be staring at insolvency, analysts suggested.

Referring to the court observation on government help, officials at the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) pointed out that it was unlikely for the government to pick up any more stake in Vi.

The Bench said it was 'really shocked' by the petitions.

"Really disturbed.

It is not expected of a multinational company.

We will dismiss it," the Bench observed.