Bharti Digital Networks Pvt Ltd vs Union Of India

Heard learned senior counsel for the petitioner and learned counsel for the respondent.

The main grievance of the petitioner is against the impugned order / communication dated 23.7.2021(Annexure P-1) whereby respondent has held that

the petitioner has violated Condition 6.1 of the Unified License by operationalising the merger of petitioner with M/s Bharti Airtel Ltd. with effect from

29.5.2019 without obtaining prior written consent of Department of Telecommunications(DoT).

For such alleged violation, a penalty of Rs. 51 crores in total has been imposed with a direction to deposit the said amount of Rs. 51 crores with a rider

that if the amount is not paid within 21 calendar days from the receipt of the impugned notice, further action may be initiated under the conditions of

the Unified License dated 25.4.2017 held by the petitioner.

The stand of the petitioner appears to be that petitioner operationalised the merger under interim and final orders passed in different proceedings

before this Tribunal. Final judgment dated 19.3.2019 and further a judgment in review dated 31.7.2019 are on record alongwith various interim orders.

Petitioner relies heavily upon those orders and judgments.

It is not in dispute that DoT has preferred appeals against those judgments which are pending, but the Hon'ble Supreme Court has not granted stay

and as a result, according to petitioner, the interim orders passed in 2018 are intact and the final judgments passed in 2019 are effective and

operational.

Learned counsel for UOI submits that since the relevant materials are on record, instead of filing a reply and burdening the record, he may be

permitted to file five documents produced before the Tribunal today. The list of documents shows that respondent has produced three letters of

various dates in 2016, 2017 and 2020 and the two other documents are a judgment by Orissa High Court and a judgment by the Hon'ble Supreme

Court reported in SCC. The above documents are taken on record.

Learned counsel for the respondent is expecting a detailed hearing on urgent basis in the light of averments in the petition which consists of two

volumes and on the basis of documents filed today with copies already served on the other side yesterday. Instead of formally admitting the petition

and relegating it to the normal list of hearing, which is quite large, it is deemed proper to hear the parties on merits on the next date because it is not

convenient to take up the matter for final adjudication today.

Learned counsel for the petitioner may seek instructions with regard to the documents and file a response, if required within four weeks.

The matter shall be treated as an ""admitted matter"" and listed under the heading ""for orders"" on 5.10.2021.

In the facts of the case, the respondent is directed not to take any coercive steps for implementation of the impugned letter/communication of penalty

till the next date.