In a verdict that will surely go down in history books, the Supreme Court canceled all 2G spectrum licenses issued in 2008,  claiming them as “totally arbitrary and unconstitutional.”  The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) found that bribes and rule violations were part of 122 telecom licenses issued in 2008 as was  reported by The Times of India. Foreign investors including Telenor (Norway), Etisalat (Abu Dhabi), Sistema (Russia), NTT DoCoMo (Japan),  are  among  the ones likely to be be affected by the verdict, these operators hold less than 10-percent of market share. The ruling , it is believed is likely to upset future interest from foreign investors, though  it’s unlikely to affect consumers: it will take a minimum of four months before the Supreme court orders any operations to be  shutdown . If you are using a number that belongs to one of the networks in the below mentioned circles, it is advised that you  move your number to another operator to avoid any inconvenience as mobile number portability won’t be affected .

The ruling has surprised people across all fields as rulings against fraud and treachery are rare in the country. P Chidambaram, former Finance minister in the year  2008, may go under the hammer as a result of the verdict, and might have to face prosecution. Existing telecom companies will either have to pay the difference between the “market rate” and the original purchase price, or may have to buy the licenses again in a new auction.

Due to the seriousness and large scale of the issue  the court  will continue to release rulings  on different aspects of the case. Regardless of  what the ultimate outcome is , this judgement is sure to raise some questions for foreign investors who plan to do business in India: as of now, the risk may be far too high.

 

List of Licenses canceled :

 

Uninor

(Circles Affected : 22)

Andhra Pradesh
Assam
Bihar
Delhi
Gujarat
Haryana
Himachal Pradesh
Jammu & Kashmir
Karnataka
Kerala
Kolkata
Madhya Pradesh
Maharashtra
Mumbai
North East
Orissa
Punjab
Rajasthan
Tamilnadu (including Chennai Service Area)
Uttar Pradesh (East)
Uttar Pradesh (West)
West Bengal

Videocon (Videocon Telecommunications Ltd)

(Circles Affected : 21)

Andhra Pradesh
Assam
Bihar
Delhi
Gujarat
Haryana
Himachal Pradesh
Jammu & Kashmir
Karnataka
Kerala
Kolkata
Madhya Pradesh
Maharashtra
Mumbai
North East
Orissa
Rajasthan
Tamilnadu                                          (including Chennai Service Area)
Uttar Pradesh (East)
Uttar Pradesh (West)
West Bengal

Loop Telecom(Loop Telecom Ltd. )

(Circles Affected : 21)

Andhra Pradesh
Assam
Bihar
Delhi
Gujarat
Haryana
Himachal Pradesh
Jammu & Kashmir
Karnataka
Kerala
Kolkata
Madhya Pradesh
Maharashtra
North East
Orissa
Punjab
Rajasthan
Tamilnadu                                          (including Chennai Service Area)
Uttar Pradesh (East)
Uttar Pradesh (West)
West Bengal

MTS (Sistema Shyam TeleServices Ltd.)

(Circles Affected : 21)

Andhra Pradesh
Assam
Bihar
Delhi
Gujarat
Haryana
Himachal Pradesh
Jammu & Kashmir
Karnataka
Kerala
Kolkata
Madhya Pradesh
Maharashtra
Mumbai
North East
Orissa
Punjab
Tamilnadu                                         (including Chennai Service Area)
Uttar Pradesh (East)
Uttar Pradesh (West)
West Bengal

Etisalat/Cheers Mobile

(Circles Affected : 15)

Andhra Pradesh
Bihar
Delhi
Gujarat
Haryana
Karnataka
Kerala
Madhya Pradesh
Maharashtra
Mumbai
Punjab
Rajasthan
Tamilnadu                                          (including Chennai Service Area)
Uttar Pradesh (East)
Uttar Pradesh (West)

Idea Cellular & Spice (Idea Cellular Ltd. & Spice Communications Ltd.)

(Circles Affected :13)

Andhra Pradesh
Assam
Delhi
Haryana
Jammu & Kashmir
Karnataka
Kolkata
Maharashtra
North East
Orissa
Punjab
Tamilnadu                                         (including Chennai Service Area)
West Bengal

S Tel(S Tel Pvt. Ltd)

(Circles Affected :6 )

Assam
Bihar
Himachal Pradesh
Jammu & Kashmir
North East
Orissa

Tata Teleservices Ltd

(Circles Affected:3)

Assam
Jammu & Kashmir
North East