The Telecom Department has rejected mobile operators’ contention that 3G roaming was permitted by the Government at the time of spectrum auction in 2010.
The Department of Telecom has taken a view that the information given at the time of auction were only guidelines and not binding.
According to an internal note, the DoT has said that if there was any conflict between the guidelines issued at the time of auction and the rules governing mobile licences then the latter would get supremacy.
DoT has already issued show cause notices to Bharti Airtel, Vodafone India and Idea Cellular on grounds that the operators violated licence conditions by using each others 3G spectrum for selling connections in areas where they did not have spectrum.
thomas.thomas@thehindu.co.in