 "SC's ruling on spectrum allocation won't affect satellite regulations")
The Supreme Court’s decision to reject the government’s application seeking clarification on spectrum allocation for non-mobile services won’t impact the allocation of satellite spectrum as per the Telecom Bill, highly placed sources said. In February 2012, the SC had upheld that auctions were the preferred method for allocating scarce public resources like telecom spectrum.
The Centre had filed a miscellaneous application in the SC on December 12 last year seeking clarification on the matter of administrative allocation of spectrum. On Wednesday, media reports pointed out that the Supreme Court’s registrar has refused to admit the plea arguing that it was ‘misconceived’ and was essentially seeking a review of the court’s 2012 order. He had said there was no ‘reasonable cause’ to entertain it, and dismissed it under official rules of the Court.
“This will not change the existing laws governing spectrum allocations for satellite communications, which are stated in the Telecom Bill. The government will study the observations of the Court,” a government source said on Wednesday.
People in the know said the government can now appeal against the Registrar’s order within 15 days. It can also officially file a fresh review petition requesting the Court to revisit the 2012 order on administrative allocation for airwaves.
Not seeking amendment
Last week, sources told Business Standard that the application had not asked the SC to amend its 2012 judgment on 2G spectrum allotment. Neither did it seek permission for administratively allocating spectrum, which the Centre has routinely done during the past decade, they had stressed.
Spectrum will continue to be auctioned for mobile services, while for the 19 specific use cases cited in the Telecom Bill, it will be allocated administratively, said the sources.
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“In the light of full transparency, given that there has been a history of litigation (on the issue) in the telecom sector, we had filed a miscellaneous application at the Supreme Court, explaining what we intended to do, before we tabled the Bill. The Telecom Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on December 18. The application was just to clarify. It was not for seeking any permission from the court,” a senior source in the government had said.
The Telecom Bill’s First Schedule lists satellite spectrum and 18 other sectors where administrative allocations will be compulsory. These include law enforcement, public broadcasting, in-flight and maritime connectivity, the Indian Army and Coast Guard, and radio backhaul for telecom services. Previously, many of these areas lacked a clear process for spectrum allocation, resulting in delays and disputes.
Administrative allocation
In 2012, the SC had criticised the ‘first-come, first-served’ method for spectrum allocation. In what was known as the CPIL judgment, after the Centre for Public Interest Litigation or the original petitioner, the court quashed the 2G spectrum allotted by the United Progressive Alliance government.
However, the government has been issuing spectrum administratively in certain cases where auctions are not technically or economically preferred or optimal, the Centre has told the SC in its latest application.
Reviewed by Business Standard, the plea sought certain clarifications from the SC on the matter so that the process of administrative allocation could continue smoothly.
It noted that all such cases of administrative assignments have been on the specific condition that these ‘shall not be treated as final but purely interim and provisional; subject to the government’s final decision on pricing and policy in the matter’.
“This application has been filed to seek appropriate clarifications from this Honourable Court regarding the CPIL judgement, to establish a spectrum assignment framework that includes methods of assignment other than auction in suitable cases, to best serve the common good,” the application reads.