The Supreme Court has allowed the central government to reconsider the issue of reassessment of AGR dues that Vodafone Idea Ltd. has to pay. Shares surged.
The matter of Vodafone Idea’s AGR dues falls within the purview of the Union of India’s policy domain, a Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice of India B.R. Gavai said on Monday.
“We clarify that this is in the policy domain of the Union… There is no reason as to why the Union should be prevented from doing…,” Gavai said. “With that view of the matter, we dispose of the writ petition.
The Supreme Court’s order came after Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta said that the government has picked up a 49% equity stake in the company in lieu of some of the dues. “There are 20 crore consumers. That was one of the decisions why the central government took this decision,” Mehta told the top court. “The consumers would suffer…they have concerns…”
The Supreme Court said the order was being passed only because the Centre had infused equity in the company by acting in the interest of consumers.
What is Vodafone Idea AGR case?
AGR stands for Adjusted Gross Revenue, which is used by the Department of Telecommunications to calculate licence fees and spectrum-usage charges for telecom operators.
The method of AGR calculation has been contested—operators say that only “core telecom revenue” should count. The DoT maintains that non-telecom revenue—rental income, asset sales, etc.—must be included.
- In an October 2019 order, the Supreme Court held that DoT’s interpretation was correct, thus significantly raising the AGR dues for telecom players.
- On 18 March 2020, the Supreme Court finalised Vodafone Idea’s AGR dues up to FY17 based on DoT’s calculations, and barred reassessment or self‐assessment of those dues.
As on date, Vodafone Idea’s AGR dues are estimated at ₹83,400 crore. The total debt—including penalties, interest, spectrum and licence fee, etc.—is at around ₹2 lakh crore.
In May 2025, the Supreme Court rejected VI’s and other telecom operators’ petitions seeking waiver of interest/penalties on AGR dues.
Vodafone Idea has argued that the burden of the AGR dues threatens its survival, that it “cannot operate beyond FY26” without relief.