RCom Seeks DoT NOC For Spectrum Deal With Jio

Reliance Communication has written a letter to the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) secretary Aruna Sundararajan to issue a no objection certificate (NOC) to its pending spectrum trading deal with Reliance Jio Infocomm, media reports stated.

As per reports, the letter cited the recent order by the Telecom Dispute Settlement & Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT), which stated that liabilities of the past lies with the seller, not with the new buyer. In this deal, RCom is selling its spectrum to Reliance Jio.

The tribunal further directed the company to take approval from DoT in regards to spectrum sell, adding that buyer (Reliance Jio) cannot be held liable until the airwaves trading deal is concluded.

DoT has so far refused to approve the spectrum sale after Mukesh Ambani-owned Jio said it can’t be held liable for RCom’s past dues. RCom had, subsequently, sought a clarification from the telecom tribunal on the interpretation of spectrum trading rules.

In this event, if DoT does not clear RCom’s spectrum trading pact with Jio, the Anil Ambani-led telco might move Supreme Court soon as “it’s armed with a favourable tribunal order.

Last week, a senior DoT official once again had ruled out the issuance of an early NOC to the spectrum trading pact on grounds that all previous guarantees extended by RCom are now infructuous, especially after the Anil Ambani-led telecom announced plans to move National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) seeking bankruptcy protection.

Reliance Communications Ltd’s share price ended at Rs6.64, up by Rs0.03 or 0.45%, from its previous close of Rs6.61 on the BSE.―Indian Infoline