The Spectrum Tussle - Cdma V Gsm

[kesav 127]

Bansal says no move to adjourn Parliament

Even though no solution is in sight over the continuing face-off between the government and the Opposition over the latters demand for constitution of a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to probe the 2G spectrum scam, something that has resulted in complete disruption of both Houses of Parliament for the past nine days, Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal on Wednesday asserted that the government was not considering the possibility of adjourning Parliament sine die.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Bansal, who has been part of the efforts made by the UPA government to break the logjam, said, There is no question (of adjourning Parliament). This possibility has not even been discussed so far. We are ready for any discussion on the issue on the floor of the House. We are still hopeful that the Opposition will be ready for a discussion on the matter. We owe that to the people of this country to transact business in Parliament.

Bansal was responding to a question whether the government was toying with the idea of adjourning Parliament sine die and hope for the Opposition to allow proceedings to take place at a later date.

Talking about the Opposition demand for a JPC to probe the 2G scam, the Parliamentary Affairs Minister said the Opposition could always raise the demand during a debate in the House.

Why do we need the JPC? Parliamentary parties or their representatives cant be investigating agencies in a matter that is already being probed by the CBI and is also in the Supreme Court. But, having said that, let me clarify that this government has nothing to hide. We have been requesting the Opposition to end the disruptions and discuss the issue inside the House. If anybody is not satisfied with the government response, nothing stops him or her from seeking a JPC. Now, what is happening is that the Opposition is not allowing the House to even begin transacting any business. They sometimes dont even allow presiding officers to take their chairs, Bansal said.

Asked why the government was shying away from accepting the demand for a JPC probe, Bansal said, Where is the question of shying away? The Public Accounts Committee (PAC), which is headed by an opposition MP, is already looking into the matter.

source :: http://www.indianexpress.com/news/bansal-says-no-move-to-adjourn-parliament/715549/

Absolutlety there's no necessity for JPC at this stage.

Establishing JPC at this stage is like ridiculing the constitutional setup called JPC.

JPC should not be setup as knee-jerk reaction.

It's should be setup for the purpose of reviewing the entire functions of all the constitutional bodies on one particular matter.

It should not be setup to do the same work as done by other constitutional bodies.

JPC germinates from parliament(one of 3 highest institutes of our democracy) and it should be given superior function of analysing the reports from all other constitutional bodies(CBI,CAG, ED, PAC etc.,) rather than doing the same work as done by other constitutional institutions.

Hope some sort of sense will prevail in the minds of BJP politicians after their victory in Bihar.

Hope they realize that they've won in Bihar for runing state assembly properly and certainly not by halting it indefinitely.

Edited November 24, 2010 by kesav

[kesav 127]

Bring in an auditor and probe 2G scam, says Ratan Tata

NEW DELHI: Tata Group chairman Ratan Tata on Friday said action should be taken against anyone found guilty of wrong-doing in 2G spectrum scam for which the government should bring in an auditor and have an investigation.

However, he expressed concern over unsubstantiated media attacks being made apparently on the basis of unauthorised tapes.

"So, I think these are bad times. I wish the government would take a stand, bring in an auditor and have an investigation. Book people who are guilty of something," he told private television channel NDTV.

Tata said it was murky and confusing for him now. "Because just a couple of weeks ago, we were a sort of sitting on top of the summit or mountain top with President Obama showering praises talking about the maturity of having emerged and not an emerging force.

"And then we have somewhat slipped into a morass of series of allegations, unauthorised tapes being flooded, the media going crazy on alleging, convicting, executing. You are literally character assassinating."

The whole thing, he said, in so doing, there has been a smokescreen behind the so-called scam which really is out of turn allocation of spectrum, hoarding of spectrum by important players for free and things of this nature.

"Stop this sort of banana republic kind of attacks on whoever one chooses to attack on a basis unsubstantiated, even before the person has in, what I consider, every Indian's right namely to be considered innocent, until found guilty in a court of law, not on the street, not in this way."

source :: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Bring-in-an-auditor-and-probe-2G-scam-says-Ratan-Tata/articleshow/6997365.cms

The following statement is in obvious reference to Mr. Raja.

"Stop this sort of banana republic kind of attacks on whoever one chooses to attack on a basis unsubstantiated, even before the person has in, what I consider, every Indian's right namely to be considered innocent, until found guilty in a court of law, not on the street, not in this way."

Mr. Raja can feel bit happy during these trying times that someone like Mr. TATA is in support of him.

Let us hope that he proves in the court of law that he deserves this trust from none other than Ratan TATA .

I'm very happy that TATA had guts to take this stand against public opinion(which is driven by unpatriotic paid media).

If he had spoken few days back on "innocence and guilty", I would have respected him more. This speech comes only after his company got bad press due to leaked tapes.

Edited November 26, 2010 by kesav

[Honest 836]

The Economic Times

Mumbai l 27th November 2010

2G scam: Ratan Tata says Radia tapes a smokescreen

MUMBAI: Ratan Tata , the chairman of India’s largest conglomerate, has described the media frenzy over the leakage of tapes featuring conversations between Niira Radia, the owner of a public relations agency, and prominent politicians, industrialists and journalists as a “smokescreen” which was deflecting attention from bigger scandals.

In an interview with the broadcaster NDTV , Mr Tata suggests that the real scandal was out-of-turn allocation of spectrum and what he described as the “hoarding” of spectrum by some telecom companies. “There has been a smokescreen behind what is really the so-called scam, which really is out-of-turn allocation of spectrum, hoarding of spectrum by important players for free, and things of this nature,” Mr Tata said.

Niira Radia, whose agency handles public relations for the Tata Group and Reliance Industries , has been questioned by government agencies that are probing her alleged role in the award of a number of telecom licences in 2008. The government’s chief auditor has said that these licences cost the exchequer Rs 1,76,000 crore because they were sold at prices set in 2001. A Raja, the telecom minister when the permits were issued, was forced to step down earlier this month.

In the interview, Mr Tata said the government should hold a proper investigation to book the guilty. “I wish the government would take a stand, bring order... have an investigation, book people who are guilty of something,” Mr Tata said.

A government agency has sent notices to nine telecom firms including Tata Teleservices , India’s fourth-biggest mobile operator, over investigations related to the alleged multi-billion dollar scam, media reports said.

In remarks posted on the channel’s website, Mr Tata criticised the media coverage of the tapes, saying it was a steep comedown from two weeks ago when US President Barack Obama backed India’s bid for membership of the United Nations Security Council and praised India’s achievements.

“We have somewhat slipped into a morass of a series of allegations... unauthorised tapes flooding... the media going crazy on alleging, convicting, executing... literally character assassination.... I wish the government would take a stand, bring an auditor... have an investigation and book people who are guilty of something, but stop this sort of Banana Republic kind of attack on whoever one chooses to attack on a basis unsubstantiated even before the person has a very Indian right, namely to be considered innocent until found guilty in a court of law.”

The tapes feature conversations between Ms Radia, Mr Tata and other industrialists, politicians and journalists. The tapes suggest that Ms Radia was lobbying for the continuation of Mr Raja as telecom minister after the 2009 elections.

[kesav 127]

Govt offers ethics panel probe to break House logjam

The Opposition is not concerned about uncovering the corrupt in its demand for a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) probe into the 2G spectrum scam, according to Congress sources.

It is waging a "political battle" on the issue of corruption. The stalling of Parliament for the 10th consecutive day on Friday is part of the Opposition's attempt to score political brownie points, the sources said.

A JPC can not only summon the Prime Minister, but could also go into various aspects of the formation of the UPA 2 cabinet, according to government sources.

"Government formation is the prerogative of the Prime Minister. It is not a healthy practice for Parliament committees to discuss it," a Union minister said.

If the Opposition thinks that the Nira Radia tapes and the involvement of corporate lobbyists and media persons (85 of them) are larger issues concerning the privilege of the House, they could be investigated by Parliament's privilege committtee or ethics committee, government sources said.

Parliamentary affairs minister Pawan Kumar Bansal said that the BJP did not agree to a JPC probe into the Tehelka and the coffin scams during the NDA regime. Rejecting the demand for a JPC, then-Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had said that the issues could be discussed on the floor of the House.

Bansal added that of the four JPCs constituted so far, all had given a split verdict, barring the one on the stock scam.

After the second all-party meeting, Sushma Swaraj and CPI leader Gurudas Dasgupta had said that the Opposition intended to bring the Prime Minister under the JPC ambit.

Commenting on the Parliament logjam, finance minister and key troubleshooter Pranab Mukherjee on Friday said it was "unfortunate" and that he would continue his efforts to find a solution. He is expected to talk to the Opposition leaders again during the weekend. The Congress core committee, headed by Sonia Gandhi, also discussed the issue on Friday.

Indications are that if the Opposition presses for a discussion on the scam in the House, the government would propose that the PM would either intervene or reply to the issues raised.

"Attempts to bring the Prime Minister into the ambit of the probe is malicious," said a senior party leader.

"We are in favour of fighting corruption. We have taken action even before our ministers were proved guilty," Bansal said.

source :: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/121363/India/govt-offers-ethics-panel-probe-to-break-house-logjam.html

Let us hope that opposition will see the good gesture from Govt. and agree to run the parliament.

Let opposition allow agree to PAC to do its job. It can also agree for privilege/Ethics committee.

This is one of the rarest of the governments ever existed in India where Govt. has acted against ministers (Sashi Tharoor, A. Raja)even before they were proved wrong.

To be more precise, recent emerging indications are clearly showing that Mr. Raja has been used as a pawn in telecom corporate scam rather than he being any wrong doer.

Opposition should not assume that they can demand anything under the roof and run the govt. on their own.

Absolutely opposition don't have any mandate to run the current government and let them be very and very clear of this point.

They have to be also driven home clear of the point that "JPC cannot be accepted until all the constitutional institutes(inc SC, PAC) complete their tasks".

It's time for the Govt. to puts its feet down very strongly if needed evict entire opposition out and run the parliament.

Govt. should not budge for this kind of political hooliganism in the shrine of democracy.

It's Govt.'s duty to protect the functions of different constitutional institutions from being diluted for some opposition leaders' egos.

Let us hope senior leaders in opposition parties will see deeper through the issue to understand the merits and advice their hooligan younger lot to behave ethically.

Edited November 27, 2010 by kesav

[Honest 836]

The Economic Times

Monday l 29th November l New Delhi

Old GSM operators benefited most in spectrum policy: Tatas

NEW DELHI: Tata Teleservices has said it has been denied extra spectrum even as the old GSM operators like Bharti, Vodafone and Idea have been allocated excess spectrum in many circles though there isn't much difference in subscription base of the Tata group company and other three.

In a recent presentation to the government, Tata Teleservices (TTSL) have pointed out that old GSM players like Vodafone, Bharti, Idea and Aircel have been allocated 43.8 Mhz of spectrum between 2003 and 2008 for free of cost.

Vodafone today stated that all allocation have been made as per the government's policy linking with the subscriber base of each operator.

TTSL said that "in many circles, TTSL has been allocated only a maximum of 4.4 MHz of GSM spectrum, whereas other incumbent operators were allocated much higher spectrum, some times more than twice, for a similar subscriber base."

According to information submitted by TTSL to the telecom ministry, in Tamil Nadu, Bharti holds 8.6 Mhz of spectrum for over 56.17 lakh subscribers, Vodafone holds 7.2 Mhz for 55.52 lkah user base and Aircel has been given 9.8 Mhz for 56.52 lakh subscribers. Whereas TTSL has been allocated only 4.4 Mhz for having equal or more (56.5 lakh) users.

Similarly in Mumbai, Bharti and Vodafone have been given 9.2 Mhz and 10.0 Mhz spectrum respectively vis-a-vis only 4.4 Mhz of spectrum to TTSL for similar number of user base.

On the controversial issue of giving licences and bundled 4.4 Mhz of spectrum to new players, TTSL said that Bharti, Vodafone, Idea and Aircel were given 48 licences and over 210 Mhz of spectrum between 2001 and 2008 at 2001 price of Rs 1,651 crore for pan-India operations.

[Honest 836]

The Economic Times

Monday l 29th November l New Delhi

Government to send 85 notices to telcos, questioning licences

NEW DELHI: The telecom ministry will send 85 notices to telecom operators questioning their licenses, the country's new telecoms minister said on Monday.

Many of these companies were not elgible for the 2G licenses granted in 2007 and 2008 and went through a self-certification process, Kapil Sibal told reporters.

"This has serious implications for transparency of process," Sibal said at a press conference. "It allows companies to get ahead of the queue on basis of first come first served, in that they did not register first with the registrar of companies."

Sibal said there are 119 such case where rollout obligations were not fulfilled, adding these companies would have to pay damages.

Sibal said many companies that got licences may not have disclosed all facts, adding that if rollout obligations were not fulfilled within 52 weeks, licences of those telecom operators were liable to be cancelled.

Sibal took over the ministry after Andimuthu Raja was forced to resign in a corruption scandal that has paralysed the Indian parliament, and, according to an official watchdog audit, has possibly lost the state $39 billion in revenue.

[kesav 127]

Vodafone lashes out on spectrum hoarding charge

RCom endorses Ratan Tata’s views

A battle between incumbent GSM and CDMA operators has broken out, with Marten Pieters, the managing director of Vodafone Essar, the country’s second-largest telecom operator, lashing out at comments made by a competing operator, saying it was ridiculous to imply that incumbent GSM players like them were hoarding scarce spectrum.

Tata group Chairman Ratan Tata said in a televised interview that important players were “hoarding spectrum” for free. Pieters also raised questions about CDMA players’ record on utilisation of scarce spectrum. Tata Teleservices is a CDMA player.

However, the Tatas got an immediate endorsement from Reliance Communications (RCom), another CDMA player. In a statement, RCom said they supported Tatas’ charges on spectrum hoarding by old GSM operators. Tatas and RCom also got permission to operate GSM services under the dual technology policy.

In a strongly worded statement, Pieters said: “There have been some reports in the media quoting certain operators on ‘spectrum hoarding’ and it is ridiculous to imply that the incumbent GSM players are hoarding spectrum.”

On utilisation of the spectrum by CDMA players, he said: “Given that the CDMA spectrum has the capacity to serve at least four-five times more subscribers than GSM (as has also been averred by the CDMA operators on affidavit), it is the CDMA operators who are under-utilising spectrum, as they are using it at levels far below the efficiency of the GSM players. Further, now with the allocation of a second stream of GSM spectrum, the spectrum utilisation efficiency of these dual technology players has dropped even further.”

However, RCom challenged his statement and said old GSM operators took 2G spectrum totally free as recently as May 2008 to March 2009.

Old GSM operators did not even pay for excess spectrum at old rates. “RCom and Tatas have consistently raised this issue with the Department of Telecommunications,” it added.

According to Pieters, under the government’s spectrum policy, a licencee initially gets 4.4 megahertz of spectrum. After that, an operator is given additional spectrum, as subscribers in the network increase. This additional 2G spectrum is given at no excess cost to the operator.

“The rationale for this policy is to achieve better utilisation of spectrum by allocating it to those who need the spectrum more, due to higher subscriber base. The licences, too, provide for allocation of additional spectrum based on usage, justification and availability and as per the norms and guidelines laid down by the government from time to time,” said Pieters. Tata had long since expressed the view that subscriber-linked spectrum allocation was not the correct method to allot spectrum, and that the companies which held extra spectrum should pay for it. He had said that CDMA players were being discriminated in spectrum allocation.

The debate has become more controversial, with the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s report, saying that 2G spectrum could be priced at the same level as that of 3G spectrum. The telecom regulator’s view has formed the basis of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India’s report, which contended that the government lost over Rs 1,70,000 crore as a result of giving spectrum at a cheap price. If spectrum given to incumbents during 2004 to 2007 is also included, the overall loss could go over Rs 2,00,000 crore.

source:: http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/vodafone-lashes-outspectrum-hoarding-charge/416634/

Looks like another round of war has started....Let us hope this war will catch up in the 3G segment too so that we'll have affordable 3G tariff....

[kesav 127]

2G scam: No reason for govt to reject JPC demand, says Advani

BHOPAL: Senior BJP leader L K Advani on Monday questioned the reluctance of the Congress-led UPA government to order a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) probe into the 2G spectrum scam, which had allegedly caused a loss of Rs 1.76-lakh crore to the exchequer.

"I do not see any reason for the government not to accept the Opposition demand for a JPC (to probe 2G spectrum allocation) as the CAG had pointed out that the scam led to a loss of Rs 1.76-lakh crore," he said here.

Advani said the contents of tapes related to the 2G scam were "very serious" and nothing short of a JPC will serve the purpose. The tapes had conversations between a corporate lobbyist, politicians, journalists and industrialists.

He was addressing a function organised here to mark the completion of five years in power of Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.

Not only the entire Opposition, but even some allies of the UPA were in favour of a JPC probe into the scandal, he said, without elaborating.

When the BJP-led NDA was in power, it had set up two or three JPCs, the former deputy prime minister said.

Talking to reporters later, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj blamed the UPA Government for the current impasse in Parliament over the JPC issue.

She said once the Government announces setting up of MPs' panel, Parliament will resume normal functioning.

source :: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/2G-scam-No-reason-for-govt-to-reject-JPC-demand-says-Advani/articleshow/7011001.cms

It's absolutely ridiculous and senseless on the part of BJP to demand JPC on this matter.

When it still does pooja for the father of corruption Mr. Yeddyurappa in Karnataka, it doesn't have any moral rights to speak on notional allegation against Mr. Raja.

Mr. Yeddyurappa's corruption is proven by himself by returning lands from his son back to Govt. In contrast none of the investigating agencies have any proof of the involvement of Mr. Raja in any scam till date. All the allegations have been in the air and only they've hypothetical numbers.

Let BJP cleans up its own mess before shedding crocodile tears...

[ravi_patent 28]

@so dear can you pl tell why s-tel was arm twisted by DOT even after a favourable HC judgement.

BJP's or for that matter deeds anyone else can not be an excuse for Raja's deeds.

pl see

or post 14 of

Edited November 30, 2010 by ravi_patent

[Honest 836]

Govt asked to respond to plea for preserving Radia tapes

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court today asked the government to respond to the plea for not destroying the tapes containing conversation between corporate lobbyist Niira Radia and others relating to the 2G spectrum scam .

A bench comprising justices G S Singhvi and A K Ganguly asked the Solicitor General to take instructions from the authorities on the plea made by the NGO Centre for Public Interest Litigation (CPIL) which has brought the matter before the court.

Advocate Prashant Bhushan appearing for the NGO had made the plea that the tapes prepared by the Director General of Income Tax containing conversation of Radia and others should be preserved.

Courtesy : The Economic Times

[Honest 836]

2G scam: CVC PJ Thomas to step down?

NEW DELHI: Chief Vigilance Commissioner (CVC) P J Thomas , the former Secretary of the department of telecommunications, is likely to step down on Tuesday days after the Supreme Court questioned his track record in the wake of investigations into the 2G spectrum allocation scam .

Sources told Times Now that the efforts are on in the government to make him resign to save the government any more embarrassment over the issue.

Thomas, whose appointment has been questioned by Supreme Court, met home minister P Chidambaram on Monday.

The former secretary in the telecom ministry, which is at the centre of the 2G spectrum storm, was appointed CVC on September 7 by a three-member panel consisting of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh , the home minister and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj. The BJP leader is said to have opposed the appointment.

The name of Thomas figures in the chargesheet filed in a palmoleine export case.

The decision comes after the Supreme Court's strong observations that a chargesheeted official doesn't qualify as an outstanding civil servant.

Thomas's role at the DoT has come under heavy criticism for a variety of reasons.

Courtesy : The Economic Times

[Honest 836]

2G spectrum: SC questions Thomas' right to supervise CBI probe

NEW DELHI: In a fresh embarrassment to the government, the Supreme Court today questioned Chief Vigilance Commissioner P J Thomas's moral right to supervise CBI's probe into the 2G spectrum scam as he himself was telecom secretary at the relevant point of time.

" CBI is functioning under the CVC, at that time he (Thomas) was functioning as telecom secretary. It would be difficult for him to objectively monitor."

"He had justified the action which are being subjected to scrutiny by this court and CBI. It would be difficult for him to objectively supervise," a bench comprising Justices G S Singhvi and A K Ganguly said.

The bench, which termed as "mind-boggling" the country's growing corruption, also sought the Centre's response to preserving tapes relating to corporate lobbyist Niira Radia's recorded conversations after an apprehension was raised that it could be destroyed as it exposed the nexus between politicians, bureaucrats and journalists.

Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the NGO, Centre for Public Interest Litigation (CPIL) which has submitted the recorded conversations before the court, said the CBI should be directed to place in a sealed cover the original copies of tapes and questioned the opposition against their disclosure by a noted industrialist -- an obvious reference to Ratan Tata who had moved the apex court raising certain objections over the leaks.

The day also saw a sudden shift in the stand of government, which contrary to its earlier strong objection agreed to the apex court monitoring the investigation. This change in stand comes in the backdrop of the growing clamour for a JPC probe an issue which has paralaysed Parliament for the past 13 days.

Though Solicitor General Gopal Subramanium tried his best to convince the court that there was no violation of rules and the government had only displayed dynamism, the bench minced no words in expressing displeasure at the manner in which the spectrum was alloted.

The bench took a dig at former telecom minister A Raja, whose involvement in the scam has come under its scanner, by saying that he was also dynamic.

"That gentleman (in an obvious reference to Raja) was dynamic. The CAG report reflects about his dynamism," the Bench observed.

While Bhushan was reading purported extracts from the Radia's conversations with Ratan Tata, MPs, former bureaucrats and journalists, the bench observed, "Not only we are talking about pollution of the Ganga for the past 28-30 years. This pollution is mind-boggling. We do not live in a world of illusion. If there is peace. The real world is in the villages and forests.

"It is the concern (pollution) of the entire community," the bench said.

Referring to various alleged exposures arising out of the Radia tapes, the apex court observed, "All this gives an indication that we are hearing some matrimonial proceedings."

Subramanium, who was arguing for the Department of Telecom, also assured the court that he would respond to the court's query on the issue of CVC after seeking necessary instruction from the government.

However, senior counsel K K Venugopal appearing for the CBI, citing the Central Vigilance Act, submitted that there was a provision for allowing one of the vigilance commissioners to take over the functions of the CVC.

This is when a contingency arises wherein it becomes difficult for the incumbent (CVC) to function for some reason or other.

Bhushan submitted that he has no objection to such a proposal as Vigilance Commissioner R Shreekumar, a former DGP from Karnataka, "enjoys a good reputation".

But he insisted that apart from the vigilance commissioner monitoring the case, the court should appoint another officer with impeccable integrity to ensure a fair supervision of the investigation.

Earlier during the hearing, the bench asked the government whether it has any objection to the court monitoring the investigation in the multi-crore rupee scandal.

Courtesy : The Economic Times

[kesav 127]

@so dear can you pl tell why s-tel was arm twisted by DOT even after a favourable HC judgement.

BJP's or for that matter deeds anyone else can not be an excuse for Raja's deeds.

pl see

or post 14 of

My dear friend,

(1) SWAN's ownership -- It's purely RCOM's issue and the ownership/eligibility issue is not only with Swan but it's there with close to 85 applicants. DoT never verified the documents at granting stage in the past and it followed the same in this case. DoT has right to cancel the license at any time if it finds documents submitted at granting stage is wrong. Normally it assumed that this right will act as deterrence for any company to submit false material. It's not in spirit of equality and justice to single out Swan.But I personally agree that DoT should and must have verified at the granting stage since such verification could have helped eligible applicants waiting in the queue from getting spectrum.

(2) S-Tel arm-twisting -- It didn't had any effect since SC has ruled against DoT on the case. SC ruling had not changed anything in the queue other than extending the queue further. Change in cut-off date should not have happened in the first place but basically it had been done to cut the length of the queue as a knee-jerk reaction on seeing heavy spurt in application.

(3)Dual Technology -- Technology neutrality is the principle on which our entire telecom growth is built on. TRAI has recommended strongly for Multi-Tech operators since It believes regulator/licensor should never control technology. Each and every sensible telecom expert forever has recommended for it. It's absolute stupidity to question allowing dual-technology operations. Nobody ever stopped any GSM operator from applying for CDMA spectrum through dual-tech mode and hence vice-versa.

By looking at the points (1) & (2), it clearly shows the incompetence of the minister but it never cast any shadow of malpractice of the minister.

As I say again Mr. Raja is incompetent to handle such a litigation-prone and dynamic portfolio like Telecom but I never agree that he had involved in any sort of scam as highlighted by paid-unethical media.

Let us wait ....Let us wait.......

We'll see the truth at the end of investigations from different agencies that too monitored by none other than SC.

Edited December 1, 2010 by kesav

[kesav 127]

2G scam: P J Thomas is still the CVC but will not oversee probe

Under heat from the Supreme Court, which has specifically questioned Chief Vigilance Commissioner P J Thomas' objectivity to monitor the 2G probe, the government on Tuesday saved Thomas' job by distancing him from the investigations into the alleged spectrum irregularities.

The Supreme Court had on Tuesday virtually questioned the tenability of P J Thomas supervising the Central Bureau of Investigation's probe into the 2G scandal as he himself was Telecom Secretary at the relevant point of time.

On Wednesday, a Bench of Justices G S Singhvi and Ashok Kumar Ganguly was told by the government's counsel, Solicitor General (SG) Gopal Subramanium, that Thomas had volunteered to recuse himself from “completely dealing” with the 2G probe being conducted by the CBI.

He said this was in the “highest traditions of the Indian civil services”.

source :: http://www.indianexpress.com/news/2g-scam-p-j-thomas-is-still-the-cvc-but-will-not-oversee-probe/718537/

Edited December 1, 2010 by kesav

[Honest 836]

Tata Tele renews attack on GSM providers

Responding to media reports, Anil Sardana, the managing director of Tata Teleservices, reasserted for his company that incumbent GSM telecom operators were indeed hoarding spectrum.

“Such operators should now clearly refrain from making such loose statements, and be watchful about resorting to such vested arguments. It is because of such misinformation that Tata Teleservices has suffered all this while, merely seeking a level playing field,” said Sardana in a media statement.

Sardana’s statement comes after a strong denial of the charge by Vodafone-Essar managing director Marten Peters. He said the charge from some competing operators that his company and other GSM operators were hoarding spectrum was ridiculous. The debate started after Ratan Tata, chairman of the Tata Group, in a TV channel interview, said GSM incumbents were doing so.

Sardana pointed to support from reports by both the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) and the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG). Both, he said, have noted that some incumbents are holding excess spectrum, which should be paid for, beyond the 6.2 MHz sanctioned by the license conditions. “Such operators need to refer to and carefully read the CAG and Trai documents,” Sardana said.

Yesterday, Vodafone had said Ratan Tata’s charge of spectrum hoarding by important companies and of CDMA providers being discriminated against were ‘ridiculous’. And, that the spectrum utilisation of dual technology providers was much lower than that of GSM ones.

Sardana said his company applied for a dual technology license only after the policy was announced by the government and incumbent operators, too, had the option to apply likewise.

He said they’d been waiting for their legitimate right to get spectrum at Delhi and another 39 key locations for nearly three years.

“These are just delaying tactics by the incumbents, who continue to add customers and keep profiting from the excess spectrum that they have been hoarding for years now,” he added. After the sanctioned spectrum given to companies with the licence, government allots extra spectrum to operators based on the number of subscribers, at no extra cost. Tata had earlier spoken against this procedure, and said incumbents should pay for the extra spectrum.

“Hopefully, the Government will now provide start-up spectrum to Tata Teleservices in Delhi and the other districts, as it has to other operators, so that long-awaited services can be started in Delhi — and thereafter deal with the subject and not continue to deprive us any more, especially as spectrum has been vacated and is now available in Delhi,” said Sardana.

Courtesy : Business Standard

[kesav 127]

I'm a victim of trial by media: Raja to SC

NEW DELHI: Former telecom minister A. Raja told the Supreme Court Wednesday that he was a victim of trial by media and the "mind-boggling" Rs.1.76 lakh crore loss to the public exchequer in the 2G spectrum allocation as mentioned in the CAG report was "presumptive and subjective" and would not stand judicial scrutiny.

"I stand condemned, charge-sheeted, tried and convicted by the media. My stock is so low that anything I say does not redeem my position," said T.R. Andhyarujina appearing for Raja before an apex court bench of Justice G.S. Singhvi and Justice Ashok Kumar Ganguly.

Raja is one of the respondents in the petition by the Centre for Public Interest Litigation (CPIL) seeking monitoring of the CBI investigation into the 2G spectrum scam by the apex court.

Andhyarujina told the court that his client was not inclined take up any contentious issues with the court and would go by any of its directions.

The senior counsel said there was no indictment and culpability of Raja in the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report. However, "there is a strong indictment of the Department of Telecommunication, and being its head I am accountable", Andhyarujina told the court.

The senior counsel said the CAG report was a "presumptive valuation of mind-boggling loss" which was totally speculative and required a very serious consideration of the court.

The court was told that the 2001 price which was charged for the allocation of the 2G spectrum in 2008 was consistent with the recommendations of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), which it had stated in 2003 and reiterated in 2005, 2007 and even in 2010.

Andhyarujina said the CAG followed a principle of accounting which is never used for calculating value. The senior counsel said that parameters followed by the CAG were presumptive and speculative.

"What Raja did in 2008 was similarly done by the then telecom minister Arun Shourie and Dayanidhi Maran," the senior counsel told the court. He told the court that 52 licences were issued between 2001 to 2007 on the same basis but they were not questioned.

Andhyarujina said he will not use strong words for the august CAG but maintained that its findings of mind-boggling losses would not stand the test of judicial scrutiny.

Earlier, Andhyarujina told the court that his client was not speaking to the media because the entire matter is sub-judice and is being heard by the apex court. However, Raja's silence should not be construed as some kind of admission of his guilt, the senior counsel told the court.

He told the court that Raja resigned "because under political compulsion you have to take a stand for the party's considerations".

source :: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/telecom/Im-a-victim-of-trial-by-media-Raja-to-SC/articleshow/7023869.cms

[Honest 836]

Govt places Radia tapes in sealed cover before SC

NEW DELHI: Government on Thursday placed before the Supreme Court in sealed cover recorded tapes containing the conversations between corporate lobbyist Niira Radia and others relating to the 2G spectrum allocation case.

While placing the recorded conversation before the bench comprising justices G S Singhvi and A K Ganguly, Solicitor General Gopal Subramanium said that it is a hard disc drive directly downloaded from the server which contains the conversations.

However, advocate Prashant Bhushan appearing for the NGO Centre for Public Interest Litigation (CPIL) said though CBI maintains that there were 5,800 conversations, it has prepared the transcript of only 3,000 such conversations.

Courtesy : The Economic Times

[Honest 836]

On Tata's plea, apex court sends notice to government

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday issued a notice to the central government on a petition of Ratan Tata , chairman of the Tata group of companies, seeking to restrain the unauthorised publication of telephone intercepts of corporate lobbyist Nira Radia in the 2G spectrum allocation scandal.

The notice has been issued to the home ministry, the finance ministry, the Central Board of Direct Taxes and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The court also issued notice to Outlook and Open magazines which have published parts of transcripts of the taped conversations that form evidence in the 2G spectrum scandal that is assessed to have had cost the state exchequer thousands of crores of rupees.

All the six respondents have been given 10 days' time to file their reply. The next hearing is slated for Dec 13.

Senior Counsel Harish Salve appearing for Tata said that the way the taped conversations were being published violated his right to privacy.

Courtesy : The Economic Times

[kesav 127]

JPC is not a representative body: Govt

The government on Thursday said even if a JPC probe was ordered into the 2G spectrum allocation, only seven of the 37 parties could find a place in the committee.

“Parliament is represented by 37 political parties, but the JPC would be restricted only to seven parties. Would it be a representative body?” Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal told reporters.

Noting that the Supreme Court was seized of the matter and was pro-actively going into the issue, he said investigation, prosecution and adjudication cannot be done by a Parliamentary panel.

The proper forum for discussion on any issue would be Parliament, he said.

Mr. Bansal’s comments came close on the heels of the NDA declaring that there was no going back on the issue of JPC demand as it was a “multi-dimensional scam, undermining democracy itself” and wondering why the government was “scared” of such a probe.

Though the financial business of Parliament would be completed on Friday with the Rajya Sabha taking up the appropriation bills for Railways, sources said there was no immediate possibility of the Parliament adjourning sine die as the government was in no mood to rush through the pending bills.

source :: http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article927642.ece?homepage=true

It's very clear that JPC is just a political tool and it serves nothing.

It falls short in terms of representation(only 7 out of 37 parties) and competence(it does not have any experts to deal with such a technical matter like spectrum).

JPC at this stage can only undermine the functions of constitutional institutes like SC,PAC,CBI,ED, etc.,

Holding parliament for upholding egos is a bad precedent and it'll only set examples for other state assemblies to follow in immediate future.

What is wrong in waiting till all constitutional institutes to complete their functions?

Anyway this Govt. has four more years to complete.

Opposition has enough time to setup and complete JPC probe even if it's setup after all the constitutional institutes complete their functions.

Bypassing/Truncating/Paralleling the functions of such high constitutional institutes like SC,PAC, CBI, ED etc., is not a good advertisement for our democracy. It's like questioning the existence of such institutes which in turn is a question on our constitution.

I feel it's high time that a law is enacted in parliament which stipulates that JPC can only be thought of after all the responsible constitutional institutes completed their respective tasks.

It will preserve the sanctity of these institutes which our founding fathers guaranteed(implicitly) under constitution.

This will also help to avoid this kind of foolish and egoistic drama in shrine of democracy.

Our founding fathers never thought during their times that this shrine will ever be occupied by such foolish people who block its functioning to block/bypass other constitutional institutes' functions.

Edited December 2, 2010 by kesav

[Honest 836]

Oppn's role in 2G Spectrum issue unfortunate, says Sharma

INDORE: Union Minister Anand Sharma today termed as unfortunate the Opposition's disruption of Parliament proceedings on the alleged 2-G Spectrum scam.

"Parliament is the biggest platform for discussion of issues concerning people, and it is unfortunate if the system is not running," he told reporters here.

Sharma alleged that the Opposition is not playing a positive role by disrupting Parliament.

BJP-led NDA, the Left parties along with the rest of the Opposition, have stalled Parliament proceedings for 16 consecutive working days, demanding a joint parliamentary committee probe in the 2-G scam.

Courtesy : The Economic Times

[Honest 836]

Vodafone, Bharti, Idea may gain from 2G licence mess

NEW DELHI | MUMBAI: Vodafone Group and Bharti Airtel may gain customers because a scandal roiling the world’s second-largest mobile-phone market is pressuring the government to cancel licences issued to smaller carriers, analysts said.

Phone users may defect to carriers other than those identified by an audit last month as having fraudulently bought licences in 2008, said Rohit Maheshwari, an analyst at KR Choksey Shares & Securities . Idea Cellular , India’s sixthlargest operator, may also stand to gain for similar reasons, he said.

The government said this week it will give the owners of 85 phone permits two months to prove they’re entitled to keep offering services after India’s top auditor found the 2008 sale of licences deprived the treasury of as much as $30 billion. The probe has led to the resignation of the telecommunications minister, A Raja and stalled parliamentary proceedings.

“If licenses for some players get cancelled, it would certainly reduce the competitive intensity,” said Mr Maheshwari, who’s based in Mumbai . “We could see their customers shifting to established players like Bharti and Idea, which I feel could add to their profits.”

Bharti’s 10% gain since November 16, when the auditor’s report was submitted to parliament, makes it the best-performing stock in the Bombay Stock Exchange’s benchmark Sensitive Index, Sensex. IIFL Capital raised its investment rating on Bharti to “buy” from “reduce” this week, citing easing competition and reduced regulatory uncertainty.

India had 687.7 million mobile phone users at the end of September . Bharti leads with 20.8% market share, followed by Reliance Communications’ 17.1%, Vodafone’s 16.8% and Idea with 10.8%. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India said last month that the telecommunications ministry awarded 2G licences to 13 ineligible companies two years ago.

Courtesy : The Economic Times

[Honest 836]

All new telcos have less than 50% active users, finds Trai

NEW DELHI: All new telcos who obtained licences under controversial circumstances in 2008 have less than 50% active customers on their networks, indicating that subscribers who opted for their services are either multiple SIM users, or had signed up only for the freebies that came bundled with the start-up kits.

Figures released by the telecoms regulator reveal that a mere 25% of S Tel’s customer base are active users, while it is 31% for Uninor and 39% for Videocon. Sistema Shyam has a 46% active users and Etisalat, whose subscriber is under a lakh, has about 43% active users. Even Tatas who launched GSM services last year under the DoCoMo brand has only 46% active customers on this technological platform.

This is in sharp contrast to the national average of 70% active users on the operators’ network. Incumbent GSM operators are showing strong numbers on this front – India’s largest telco by both customers and revenues, Bharti Airtel’s has 90% active customers, Idea Cellular at 88%, followed by Vodafone Essar at 75%, Trai’s data adds.

“Most of the new operators are in the business of throwing SIMs to collect a customer base and Trai’s data is therefore no surprise. The industry was aware of this,” said BK Syngal, senior principal, Dua Consulting, and former chairman of VSNL.

This is also the first time that the telecoms regulator is releasing the percentage of active customers on operators’ networks. Trai calculated these numbers based on the visitor location register (VLR) figures released by all operators on September end. VLR is a temporary database of the subscribers who have roamed into the particular area which it serves. Each base station in the network is served by exactly one VLR, hence a subscriber cannot be present in more than one VLR at a time.

Admitting that the ratio of active users on their networks were low, Uninor, in which Norway’s Telenor holds a majority stake, said that high churn and a multi-SIM situation were challenges that a new operator faced.

“This is true for every operator that is new in any circle – irrespective of its vintage elsewhere. Our aim continues to be to move towards a primary SIM status, and we have seen encouraging results with our dynamic pricing concept where a customer needs to keep our SIM switched on in the phone to enjoy the benefits of location changing discounts. This is already resulting in improved VLR ratios and good revenue growth,” the company added in its reply to an ET query.

The CDMA operations of Reliance Communications and Tata Teleservices score lower on the active customer ratio, at 68 % and 44% respectively, when compared to the incumbent GSM operators.

Etisalt and S Tel did not respond to an ET query on this issue. BSNL and Aircel both have 59% active users on their networks.

Courtesy : The Economic Times

[Karthik R 246]

Bharti, Idea attack CDMA players for inflating customer numbers

With up to 90 per cent of their subscriber base active on telecom networks, leading GSM operators Bharti and Idea today attacked CDMA players for 'spreading lies and inflating customers numbers' to demand extra spectrum.

They welcomed telecom regulator TRAI's initiative to report active subscriber base, which excludes customers who remain switched-off from telecom networks.

"With close to 90 per cent active customers for Bharti and 88 per cent for Idea, we have maintained high reporting standards to serve genuine information needs, rather than spurious propaganda needs. We welcome this new initiative of the TRAI to capture the real active telecom user base in the country," the two firms said in a joint statement.

They said that TRAI data has nailed "the canards and lies" spread by a set of telecom players (CDMA), falsely accusing GSM operators of reporting inflated customer numbers.

Tata Teleservices (TTSL) and Reliance Communications (RCom) are the two leading CDMA operators and had recently charged that established GSM operators were holding excess spectrum over and above the contractual limit.

Refuting the allegations made by CDMA players, Airtel and Idea said that "they are the ones who have inflated their own numbers’ as evidenced in the report of their VLR records establishing a very low active customer base both for their long established CDMA operations and the relatively new GSM operations."

The TRAI report exposes the double standards of these operators, they added.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) for the first time has reported the Visitor Location Register (VLR) for September, which captures the number of active customers on mobile networks.

VLR is a temporary database of the subscribers who have had their mobiles active as recorded by operators' base stations. Each base station in the network is served by exactly one VLR, hence a subscriber cannot be present in more than one VLR at a time.

The dual technology players, including Tata Teleservices reported an active user of 44 per cent on its CDMA platform and 46 per cent on the GSM platform.

Reliance Communications had an active user of 66 per cent on the GSM technology and 68.26 per cent on CDMA.

According to the Trai data, of the 687.71 million mobile subscribers, as of September, 2010, only 482.89 million users were listed as active subscribers in VLR.

Recently, operators were asked to submit details on all VLR numbers to the government, since they provide details on active customers at any given point of time, excluding switched off and out of coverage area customers.

The decision was taken amid reports that the subscriber numbers reported by the operators were incorrect and did not give a true picture of the number of actual mobile users in the country.

Source : mydigitalfc

This is a major blow and the findings will have more implications

Edited December 6, 2010 by Karthik R

[Honest 836]

2G scam: Allies force Congress to rethink on JPC

NEW DELHI: Worried by the political fallout of the continuing logjam in Parliament over the 2G scam, the allies of the Congress have forced the party to reconsider its stand on the demand for a joint parliamentary committee probe into the mega-crore swindle.

Unrelenting pressure from allies, particularly Mamata Banerjee, led the Congress to agree to discuss the issue afresh with three allies — Banerjee's Trinamool Congress, Sharad Pawar's NCP and the DMK. Representatives of the three partners were scheduled to meet finance minister Pranab Mukherjee.

The meeting was suddenly put off for unconfirmed reasons — that Mamata was not in town was cited as one — but the very fact that it was called pointed to the pressure on the Congress leadership.

Banerjee, who believes that a stubborn opposition to a JPC could hurt Trinamool's chances in the upcoming West Bengal polls, was quoted by TV channels as supporting the demand for a parliamentary probe. When contacted by TOI, she took a more nuanced position: "I have been saying for a long time that we want the truth to come out in the 2G spectrum issue. We are with the Prime Minister in whatever he decides."

Ironically, even DMK, whose insistence on retaining A Raja as telecom minister was seen as the source of the spectrum turmoil, is learnt to have counselled a reconsideration citing the same ground — forthcoming state elections in Tamil Nadu in which it can't afford to be seen as being opposed to a transparent probe into the scam.

Sharad Pawar has no such poll compulsion but, according to sources, he too favours fresh ways of resolving the stalemate in Parliament.

Significantly, Congress refused to confirm that any meeting had been called to review the strategy. Pawar, who had reached Mukherjee's office for the meeting, said he had come to discuss the Food Advisory Council's meeting scheduled to be held with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. He also denied differences within the ruling coalition. "UPA is united on the issue of JPC. There is no split. No sine die, no JPC," he said.

Sources, however, attributed the sudden postponement to the publicity surrounding what was supposed to be a hush-hush meeting.

Congress, which initially seemed open to the idea of a JPC, toughened its stand after realising that its partners would be in a minority in the committee, and that it would be at the mercy of parties like SP and BSP. While the chairman of the committee is going to be from Congress, party managers are not confident that he can play the bulwark against a resurgent opposition which sees JPC as a device to tie down Congress.

Courtesy : The Times Of India

[kesav 127]

Completely assumptive(may be paid on lines of Vir/Bharka) reporting by Times of India without any substance.

Every Indian knows JPC drama is just political and it has nothing to do with transparency.

On contrary, allowing JPC will only make the entire process more opaque and political by bypassing every other constitutional institution.

Trinamool or DMK is not foolish to believe that by accepting JPC(political joke) they can get votes. Just ridiculous......

Edited December 10, 2010 by kesav