GSM companies rush to TDSAT, want new rule scrapped
COAI has demanded that the tribunal consider the circumstances and sequence of events leading to the announcement of the policy. How to be courteous on cellphone?
By TNN |
NEW DELHI: GSM operators on Tuesday filed a petition in telecom tribunal TDSAT, challenging the new telecom policy issued by the department of telecom (DoT) on the grounds that it favoured only CDMA players and was framed in a “completely non-transparent manner”.
The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), the industry body of GSM operators, in its petitions has said that DoT had allowed a CDMA operator (Reliance Communications) to make the necessary payments for GSM licences and complete all formalities even before it had announced the new policy. “These recent acts of DoT smack of legal mala fides,” the COAI petition said.
While challenging the government’s move to permit dual technology (allowing operators to offer both GSM and CDMA technology under the same licence) and tightening the subscriber-based spectrum allocation norms,) COAI has demanded that “all files of Telecom Commission relating to revised guidelines be placed before the tribunal”.
The COAI has also demanded that the tribunal consider the circumstances and sequence of events leading to the announcement of the new policy. It has alleged that the DoT called for a meeting of Telecom Commission, headed by telecom secretary, on October 18, and within half an hour of the conclusion of this meeting had issued an in-principle approval to CDMA operators to use dual technology.
“By the next morning (on October 19), one large CDMA operator submitted the necessary fee as also a detailed application for assignment of frequency and other parameters in duly completed formats, even before the new policy was unveiled,” the COAI said.
In support of its stance, the COAI petition lists numerous instances where both the DoT and sector regulator Trai said that no licensee could hold both GSM as well as CDMA spectrum under the same licence.
“In light of the fact above, any applications made by a CDMA operator for allocation of GSM frequency at a time when the same was clearly not permitted, was ipso facto void ab initio, illegal and non est and therefore cannot be acted upon,” the petition added.
With regard to the DoT’s move to tighten the subscriber-based allocation norms multiple times, the COAI has contended that Trai had issued these recommendations without any consultations on the issue.
The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), the industry body of GSM operators, in its petitions has said that DoT had allowed a CDMA operator (Reliance Communications) to make the necessary payments for GSM licences and complete all formalities even before it had announced the new policy. “These recent acts of DoT smack of legal mala fides,” the COAI petition said.
While challenging the government’s move to permit dual technology (allowing operators to offer both GSM and CDMA technology under the same licence) and tightening the subscriber-based spectrum allocation norms,) COAI has demanded that “all files of Telecom Commission relating to revised guidelines be placed before the tribunal”.
The COAI has also demanded that the tribunal consider the circumstances and sequence of events leading to the announcement of the new policy. It has alleged that the DoT called for a meeting of Telecom Commission, headed by telecom secretary, on October 18, and within half an hour of the conclusion of this meeting had issued an in-principle approval to CDMA operators to use dual technology.
“By the next morning (on October 19), one large CDMA operator submitted the necessary fee as also a detailed application for assignment of frequency and other parameters in duly completed formats, even before the new policy was unveiled,” the COAI said.
In support of its stance, the COAI petition lists numerous instances where both the DoT and sector regulator Trai said that no licensee could hold both GSM as well as CDMA spectrum under the same licence.
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“In light of the fact above, any applications made by a CDMA operator for allocation of GSM frequency at a time when the same was clearly not permitted, was ipso facto void ab initio, illegal and non est and therefore cannot be acted upon,” the petition added.
With regard to the DoT’s move to tighten the subscriber-based allocation norms multiple times, the COAI has contended that Trai had issued these recommendations without any consultations on the issue.
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