AIRCEL LIMITED Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioners have come up with the above writ petitions, challenging the two conditions imposed by the Government of India for the grant of In Principle Approval of the competent authority to amend the CMTS license, upon the merger of two companies.

(2.) HEARD Mr. P.S. Raman, learned senior counsel for the petitioners and Mr. Haja Mohideen Gisthi, learned Central Government Standing Counsel for the respondent.

(3.) ON 15.9.2005, the Government of India issued a circular for the merger of Chennai Metro Service Area and Rest of Tamil Nadu Service Area, on the ground that such bifurcation of the State of Tamil Nadu into two service areas, namely Chennai Metro and Tamil Nadu Telecom Circle, was contrary to public interest. The circular, therefore, called upon the licensees who were having licenses in both service areas, to apply for the issue of license for the merged service area, without payment of any additional entry fee. The circular indicated that the effective date for the merged license shall be the same as that of the existing license. But, if the effective dates of existing licenses were not the same, the circular stipulated that the effective date of the license, later in point of time, shall be the effective date for the merged license.