TELECOM MINISTRY ADVANCES 2G CUTOFF BY 6 WEEKS IN 45-MINUTE WINDOW
Favored Front Firms Ready with Drafts at Sanchar Bhawan While Rivals Locked Out
On the afternoon of 10 January 2008, the Department of Telecom under A. Raja issued a sudden press release giving applicants just 45 minutes to submit Letters of Intent and bank drafts worth hundreds of crores.
The cut-off date for applications had been arbitrarily moved back from 1 October 2007 to 25 September 2007 without prior notice.
Favored real-estate companies like Unitech and Swan Telecom, having received insider information, were already waiting at Sanchar Bhawan with pre-prepared demand drafts and walked away with pan-India spectrum licenses at 2001 throwaway rates.
📌 Key Figures & Decision Makers
- ▸ A. Raja (Telecom Minister)
- ▸ R.K. Chandolia
- ▸ Swan Telecom
- ▸ Unitech Wireless
- • CBI Chargesheet in 2G Spectrum Allocation Case No. RC/DAI/2009/A/0045 (CBI Special Court, 2011)