The Appellate Division on Thursday ordered private mobile operator Grameenphone to pay Tk 1,000 crore to Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission by Monday next (within February 24). A seven-member appellate bench led by Chief Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain issued the order.
Lawyer AM Amin Uddin and barrister Mehedi Hasan Chowdhury stood for GP while attorney general Mahbubey Alam and barrister Khandaker Reza-e-Raquib represented the state. On November 24, 2020, the Appellate Division asked GP to pay Tk 2,000 crore of the Tk 12,579.95 crore dues claimed by BTRC within three months. The deadline will expire on February 23.
BTRC claimed the dues in 27 sectors from the mobile operator but failed to recover the money. Later, BTRC sent a notice to GP threatening to revoke its licence on April 2 last year.
But GP moved the court seeking a temporary injunction on the notice which was turned down on August 28 that year. The mobile operator later filed an appeal with the High Court. On October 17, the High Court imposed a two-month injunction on realisation of dues from GP. BTRC later moved the Appellate Division against the order.
