What Supreme Court’s decision could mean for telcos: Infographic

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has listed for Thursday the limited review petitions filed by Bharti Airtel/ Vodafone Idea/Tata Teleservices and a few PSUs against the apex court’s earlier verdict widening the definition of adjusted gross revenue (AGR) to include non-core items.

If the verdict doesn’t go in telcos’ favour, they will have to pay ₹1.47 lakh crore of licence fees (over ₹92,000 crore), spectrum usage charge (SUC), interest and penalties by January 23. Vodafone Idea and Airtel will be the worst hit, with dues of over ₹53,000 crore and ₹35,500 crore, respectively. Interest and penalties make up about 75% of the dues. A favourable outcome could include deferred payments and a penalty waive off. Built in below are some scenarios that could be the result of SC’s decision and its impact on the telecom sector.