The Supreme Court today expanded the scope of the 2G spectrum scam investigation to the period from 2001 to 2008. It directed the Central Bureau of Investigation and the enforcement directorate to complete their investigation by February next year. The court will monitor the probe.
The court’s order said: “The CBI shall, if it has already not registered a first information report in the context of the alleged irregularities committed in the grant of licences from 2001 to 2006-07, now register a case and conduct thorough investigation with particular emphasis on the loss caused to the public exchequer and corresponding gain to the licensees/service providers.”
The investigation shall also cover huge loans granted by public sector banks and question whether DoT officials were signatories to the licence agreements.
The CBI and the government have agreed to a court-monitored investigation. Therefore, the court did not find any need for a special investigation team to be appointed by it. The first report will be given to the court on February 10. The judges clarified that the focus of the probe would be to determine the loss to the public exchequer.
As a consequence of today’s order, the allocation of spectrum under various coalition governments from 2001 to 2008 will be under the scanner. This includes the period when Pramod Mahajan and Arun Shourie of the NDA held the telecom portfolio.
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“We are giving directions that the CBI shall carry investigation based on the CVC report and consider the findings of CAG which has prima facie found that ineligible entities were granted licences,” the order said.
The court further asked the investigating agencies to probe the transfer of dual technology, CDMA and GSM. One of the service providers was given a licence a day earlier than the notification was issued for dual technology.
The court has also asked the Directorate of Income Tax to hand over the transcripts of the tapped conversations carried out under the order of the Home Secretary to the CBI.
The wide-ranging investigation will include the issue of how licences were granted to ineligible operators and why Trai did not take action in these matters. The investigation will also find out why roll-out obligations were not fulfilled.
A Tata Teleservices Limited spokesperson said: “We welcome the directive of the Supreme Court to take the 2G spectrum allocation probe right back to 2001, so that a holistic picture of spectrum allocation emerges ...and how some operators have disproportionate benefits of excess spectrum.