Bharti Airtel’s second quarter results, which were expected to be released in the post-market hours on Tuesday, has now been deferred until November 14 as the company seeks more clarity on the Supreme Court’s verdict on the adjusted gross revenues (AGR).

In a massive setback for Bharti Airtel, Vodafone-Idea and Reliance Communications, the Supreme Court on Thursday rejected the telecom companies' definition of AGR.

The government and the telecom companies were locked in a legal battle in a 14-year-old case over the definition of AGR, on the basis of which the telecom department calculates levies payable by companies. With its judgement, the apex court has exposed the incumbent telecom firms to potential demands by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) of up to Rs 1.33 lakh crore.

The court has held that all revenues, except for termination fee and roaming charges, will be a part of the AGR. Telcos had argued that non-telecom, non-core revenues should not be a part of the AGR.

The amount of Rs 92,000 crore claimed by DoT as licence fee includes the principal amount, interest and penalties. Of the Rs 92,000 crore, Rs 21,682 crore is sought from Bharti Airtel.

Bharti Airtel has said that it will be approaching the DoT to seek clarity on the total amount involved and request for their support to deal with the Supreme Court verdict.

First Published:Oct 29, 2019 8:58 AM IST