Ministry set to review 85 ‘ineligible’ 2G licences

NEW DELHI: The communications and IT ministry is expected to start a review of the 85 licences issued during A Raja’s term in Sanchar Bhavan . The move follows the Comptroller and Auditor General’s report on 2G spectrum allocation pointing to irregularities in the manner in which licences and frequencies were awarded to ineligible players.

The process is not expected to be sudden or knee-jerk and will be carried out with the objective of ensuring that mobile phone users are not inconvenienced while the government signals that it has acted against corporates who bent the rules or did not fully comply with them.

There is a view that the policy principle of awarding licences on the basis of firstcome , first-served would have to be viewed separately from its evaluation and implementation . FCFS may have ensured better viability of services than an “overpriced” auction but the process was mired by reported favouritism and change of criteria.
Review process may not lead to harsh decisions.

While using the FCFS principle, the telecom department under Raja had tweaked the rules which helped some of the players bag licences, the CAG audit has shown.

Sources pointed out that issues like using the 2001 pricing policy in 2008 were indefensible but the 1995 migration of licences to revenue sharing pointed to the need to keep viability of services in mind. But the exit of DMK’s A Raja as communications and IT minister is bringing to light critical lapses in oversight that cannot be brushed aside.

Just as the courts made Raja’s continuance in office problematic for the government, there is a view that public sentiment on corporates cannot be ignored. In this context, Raja’s actions are seen as indefensible even as some feel that he was principally catering to his political bosses.

Any move to cancel licences is fraught with the prospect of lengthy legal challenges but the manipulation that has been brought to light by the CAG has increased pressure on government to bring erring corporates to book. The telecom ministry’s scrutiny is likely to dwell on how the processes were compromised and measures to prevent a repeat show.

The scrutiny may take some time as the ministry looks to sort out a maze of conflicting claims, with the situation being complicated by the large number of violators. If the number had been less, the government would have found it easier to act against them but now it would need to balance the interest of customers as well.

This means that the review process may not result in harsh decisions even though political authorities are clear that some sort of exemplary action is needed.