Supreme Court Extends 2G Auction Deadline to Jan 11


New Delhi: The Supreme Court Monday allowed the government to complete the 2G spectrum auction by Jan 11, 2013.

The apex court said it will initiate contempt proceedings if the government failed to complete the auction process within the new deadline.

"Exemplary costs may be imposed in the event of failure to complete auction process within the deadline," a division bench of justices G.S. Singhvi and K.S. Radhakrishnan said in its ruling.

The government had sought time until Nov 12 to begin the auction and 40 days from the completion of auction to allocate frequencies.

The court had earlier set Aug 31 as the date by which the auction had to be completed. But the department of telecommunications (DoT) had asked for an extension.

The Supreme Court ruled that operators whose licences would have been cancelled on Sep 7 could continue their services till Jan 18.

The Supreme Court had cancelled 122 licences Feb 2 and ordered the government to redistribute the licences through an auction process. It had set a deadline of June 2 which was later extended to Aug 31 on the DoT's plea.

Earlier during the day, the government had laid out an information memorandum, detailing the rules and regulations for the auction and potential bidders.

Source: IANS