Finance ministry against penalty relief for telecom cos

NEW DELHI: The finance ministry on Sunday objected to deferring or waiving a part of interest and penalty for the telecom industry hit by the Supreme Court’s adjusted gross revenue (AGR) burden, effectively blocking a reprieve for the beleaguered mobile operators.

At a specially-convened meeting in the telecom department headquarters, finance ministry officials said any concession on payment of penalty would “set a wrong precedent and lead to similar demands” from other sectors, sources told TOI. A full meeting of the multi-ministry digital communications commission is likely on Monday.

The government is working overtime to sort out the mess as telecom companies have time till March 17 to clear the dues.