Vodafone Idea Files Fresh Plea in Supreme Court Seeking Waivers on AGR Dues

Vodafone Idea (Vi) has reportedly filed a fresh petition in the Supreme Court of India seeking a waiver of penalties, interest, and interest on penalties on its adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues. A similar plea was rejected by the court in May this year.

According to a Moneycontrol report, the amended petition also requests a recalculation of AGR liabilities. In its plea, the indebted telecom giant has cited old judgements where waivers were granted, such as the 1999 case of Mineral Area Development Authority vs Steel Authority of India.

The case dealt with the constitutional validity of state-imposed taxes on mineral rights. The dispute arose under the Bihar Coal Mining Area Development Authority (Amendment) Act, 1992, and the Bihar Mineral Area Development Authority (Land Use Tax) Rules, 1994, which levied taxes on land used for mining.

In a ruling last year, the Supreme Court clarified that royalty paid by mining lessees is not a tax but a contractual payment to the lessor for mineral extraction. It also affirmed that state legislatures have the authority to impose taxes on mineral rights under Entry 50 of List II of the Seventh Schedule, within limits set by Parliament.

What Are AGR Dues?

The AGR liabilities matter has been pending in the courts for over two decades. It began with a DoT definition of spectrum liabilities, which includes a portion of revenue from telecom and non-telecom operations. Telecom operators challenged this definition in courts, and after years of litigation, the Supreme Court upheld the DoT's definition in 2020.

The apex court also imposed over ₹1.47 lakh crore in dues, comprising ₹92,642 crore in license fees and ₹55,054 crore in spectrum usage charges. The Court provided a 10-year payment timeline starting March 2026.

Vodafone Idea has around ₹83,400 crore of such liabilities, even after the government converted ₹53,083 crore of the dues into equity in two rounds of relief, taking its total stake in the company to about 49%.

Last Supreme Court decision on AGR dues

In May, the company asked the court to provide relief on interest, penalties, and interest on penalties accumulated under the ₹83,400 crore dues. This petition was also joined by Bharti Airtel and Tata Telecommunications.

The bench of Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice R Mahadevan had dismissed writ petitions and criticised the companies for filing petitions even after the AGR litigation was concluded.

However, the court stated that if the government wishes, it may provide relief to the companies.

Amid negotiations on the relief, the DoT reportedly issued an additional demand of ₹9,450 crore in AGR dues. The company contends that this new demand had already been “crystallised” in earlier orders issued by the apex court.

Of the ₹9,450 crore fresh demand, ₹2,774 crore is against the Idea Group and post-merger Vodafone Idea, while ₹6,675 crore targets Vodafone Group for the pre-merger period.

The company stated that ₹5,606 crore of the new demand relates to periods up to FY17, which were already settled by the 2020 order. Vodafone Idea earlier this month asked the Supreme Court to quash the DoT’s claims for these years and direct a full reconciliation of AGR dues.

That petition was filed against the Department of Telecom (DoT) over an additional demand of ₹5,606 crore in AGR dues from FY17.

During a hearing last week in that case, the bench comprising Chief Justice B. R. Gavai and Justices K. Vinod Chandran and N. V. Anjaria asked the Centre to resolve the matter. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the court that the government is also looking to find a solution. The next hearing in the case is listed for October 6.