Deccan Herald : Jun 11, 2020, 06:17 PM
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday told the Union government to reconsider its demand of Rs 4 lakh crore, raised as the adjusted gross revenue (AGR) against the public sector undertakings (PSUs) for use of spectrum, saying it was wholly impermissible.A bench presided over by Justice Arun Mishra warned of contempt action against the senior officers, for raising such a demand against the PSUs in terms of its 2019 judgement."This is an outright misuse of our verdict. You are making a demand of over Rs 4 lakh crore. This is wholly and totally impermissible," the bench told Solicitor General Tushar Mehta.Mehta, appearing for the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), asked the court to clarify the judgement. The court, however, declined the plea."There are a few PSUs which form a class unto themselves. They discharge government functions. These PSUs are not providing mobile services like other telecom providers for commercial exploitation. These companies need to be treated differently than private sector telecom providers," he said."We would request you to withdraw this (demand on PSUs) otherwise we will take strict action against them (the officers)," the bench told him.The bench also asked other telecom companies as to how they will pay the AGR dues of over Rs 142 lakh crore. The government has sought a window of 20 years for payment.The court fixed the matter for further hearing on June 18.