The Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday rejected the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) plea seeking Rs 1,700 crore bank guarantee for granting approval to Airtel-Telenor merger.

Earlier, DoT had sought a guarantee of Rs 1,500 crore for one-time spectrum charge payable by Bharti and guarantee of Rs 200 crore for Telenor’s outstanding spectrum payment.

The DoT had moved the SC challenging the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) order allowing merger without bank guarantee.

After the SC's decision, now the onus is on DoT to clear Airtel-Telenor deal.

Going forward, it also sets a precedent as far as other merger and acquisitions (M&A) are concerned. The Vodafone-Idea merger is still pending before the DoT.