Telecom major Vodafone Mobile Service Ltd and its group companies today approached the Delhi High Court challenging TRAI’s Telecommunication Interconnect Usage Charges Regulations, 2015 by which it has fixed termination charges for wireline to wireless as zero paise and wireless to wireless as Rs 0.14 per minute.
Interconnection Usage Charges (IUC) or termination charges are to be paid by one telco, whose subscriber makes a call, to another whose subscriber receives the call. The charge is due to be paid by the first for using the second’s network.
A bench, comprising Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw, refused to give any interim relief to the telecom major saying Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has to be heard and also because the regulations were enforced in February, 2015.
The bench asked TRAI to file its reply in four weeks and forwarded the matter for further hearing on January 19, 2016.
During the brief hearing, senior advocate K Viswanathan, representing Vodafone, said the regulations are illegal and in gross violation of the principles of natural justice, beyond the functions of TRAI.
He said that TRAI itself has said in its 2001 Regulations that the interconnection charges shall be levied on cost basis to provide compensation to the operators for work done for termination of calls on their network.