NCLT directs DoT not to suspend Aircel’s spectrum license

The bankruptcy court has directed the telecom department not to suspend spectrum licenses of Aircel , a huge relief to the defunct operator, at a time when Aircel is on the verge of selling its assets and the airwaves are most valuable of them.“ The relief sought by the Corporate Debtor is that due to issuance of Demand Notice by DoT an apprehension is that the same may be suspended. We hereby direct that the clauses of "Moratorium" are squarely applicable on this Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process Proceedings, hence need not be interrupted or hampered by any authority,” said National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) on its verdict , which was made available in early hours of Thursday .The battle between Aircel , which keeled under a debt of Rs 26,000 crore, and Department of Telecommunications (DoT) started when the latter demanded dues on airwaves be paid to the government failing which licenses should be suspended . The telecom department was against resolution professionals being allowed to sell spectrum under the insolvency process, arguing that airwaves are a natural resource which belongs to the government and is just leased to an operator with a right to use for 20 years, DoT in fact wanted bankrupt telcos to return their airwaves to the government which it can then auction.DoT's views in the Aircel case come as it realised it would barely get a crore or two from the resolution plan cleared by the Committee of Creditors (CoC) for the bankrupt operator. DoT had filed claims worth some Rs10,000 crore, of which only Rs2,000 crore was approved by Deloitte.But the department will be disappointed by this order . “...hereby instruct the concerned DoT authority not to make any attempt to cancel the impugned license issued in favour of the debtor company,” said NCLT’s Mumbai bench. This verdict will also impact the second bankrupt operator in telecom industry -Reliance Communications (RCom) , which is also waging a legal battle against DoT over spectrum on similar grounds. “Bench is of the view that, admittedly the License/Spectrum is an asset of State over which the Corporate Debtor has no right of ownership, therefore, up to this extent the argument of the Government is hereby accepted...,” said the court order but also mentioned that resolution professional -Deloitte , “ is not demanding the 'ownership' of the license as a product but simply seeking uninterrupted use of the said intangible asset”.The tribunal concluded that 'right to use' should remain, during the period agreed upon, with the Corporate Debtor which is always beneficial for the company as well as for all stake holders. The resolution plan -in which lenders of the telco have agreed to sell their assets to UV Asset Reconstruction Ltd (UVARCL) , is awaiting the court’s approval as well. Aircel, which declared bankruptcy in March 2018 after failing to repay its debt, has received claims worth Rs 20,000 crore from lenders and a claim for a similar amount from operational creditors.However, this may not be the end of the legal tussle . The government is expected to explore all legal options to ensure bankrupt telcos return their spectrum and the matter may be taken up to higher courts . This case will also help UVARCL look at suitable buyers once the resolution plan is approved . Aircel’s spectrum bands, which are valid until 2026 except for Tamil Nadu, should evoke interest from the telcos planning to expand their 4G base but at about a 20-25% discount on the base price offered in last auction.Aircel has previously told the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) that its spectrum is worth Rs 1,100-2,000 crore.

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