AGR case: SC orders telcos to file balance sheets of past 10 years

In its affidavit, Bharti Airtel on Thursday told the court it had paid a substantial part of its AGR dues, seeking 20 years to pay the rest.

The Supreme Court has opened a new front, asking Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea to submit their financial statements for the past 10 years in the long-winded adjusted gross revenue (AGR) case as the two telcos listed reasons for not furnishing bank guarantees and sought a 20-year term to pay their dues. The top court will next hear the case in the third week of July.

In its affidavit, Bharti Airtel on Thursday told the court it had paid a substantial part of its AGR dues, seeking 20 years to pay the rest. Explaining why furnishing a fresh bank guarantee was not necessary, the Sunil Mittal-led telco told the court Airtel was no fly-by-night operator. Financially stressed Vodafone Idea’s counsel said if it was forced to give a bank guarantee, the company would go down, hitting hundreds of jobs. The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has sought time from the court to assess the affidavits of the telcos.

Responding to the court’s recent observation that there was no merit in the government asking public sector units to pay Rs 4-trillion AGR dues, The DoT has withdrawn the bulk of its demand. The DoT told the SC on Thursday that it had decided to withdraw 96 per cent of the Rs 4-trillion demand against non-telecom PSUs such as GAIL and Power Grid Corp. In effect, AGR dues worth Rs 3.7 billion have been taken off.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the DoT, informed a three-judge bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra that the demand against non-telecom PSUs had been withdrawn.