DHAKA, Nov 18, 2019 (BSS) – The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court
has deferred its order until November 24 on a petition filed by the
Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) seeking a stay on
the High Court’s injunction about its move to realise Tk 12,580 crore due
from Grameenphone (GP).
A four-member bench of the Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice
Syed Mahmud Hossain today said a seven-member full bench will pass the order
on the issued on November 24.
However, the top court asked Grameenphone not to pursue any arbitration
process over Tk 12,580 crore in ‘unpaid dues’ to the BTRC during the period.
The SC was scheduled to pass order on the petition today.
On November 14, the leading mobile phone operator informed the apex
court that it is ready to pay Tk 200 crore to BTRC as per the proposal it got
in a recent meeting with the finance minister and the posts and
telecommunications minister.
But, a lawyer for the BTRC told the Appellate Division that Grameenphone
should clear 50 percent of the Tk 12,580 crore due now.
BTRC on April 2 demanded around Tk 12,580 crore from GP as due in
different items. The telecom operator later filed a case with the lower
court, seeking a temporary injunction on realizing the money.
But the court on August 28 scrapped the plea of GP, making it to file an
appeal with the High Court.