Telecom dispute settlement appellate tribunal (Tdsat) on Tuesday ordered telecom department to reimburse Rs 25 crore with 9 per cent per annum interest within two weeks to Bharti Airtel, Vodafone and Idea Cellular, by ruling that “principles of natural justice do not apply”.
The judgement is likely to be only a temporary reprieve for the companies. The telecom department is likely to start fresh proceedings by issuing show cause notices. The case was heard by justice SB Sinha, chairman Tdsat and justice PK Sinha, member Tdsat.
Telecom department (DoT) had alleged that Bharti Airtel, Idea Cellular and Vodafone violated license norms and issued subscriber identity module (SIM) cards and mobile handsets to telecom solutions providers. The SIM cards were used to provide communications solutions to short-term visitors like tourists visiting India and Indians going abroad.
