The Government has appointed former Chief Justice of India R C lahoti as arbitrator in the Rs 20,000 crore tax dispute case with UK telecom major Vodafone.
“Yes, he (lahoti) has been appointed for arbitration from our side,” a Finance Ministry official told the news agency. The government’s decision was in response to an arbitration notice served by Vodafone International Holdings B.V. In April under the Bilateral Investment Protection and Promotion Agreement between India and the Netherlands for resolving the dispute.
Following the international arbitration notice by Vodafone, the Cabinet of the previous United Progressive Alliance regime on May 15 approved the withdrawal of a conciliation offer.
The Cabinet had approved the conciliation with Vodafone in June last year in a bid to resolve the capital gains tax dispute related to its 2007 acquisition of Hutchison Whampoa’s stake in Hutchison Essar.
While the basic tax demand was Rs 7,990 crore, the total outstanding, including interest and penalty, is estimated to have risen to Rs 20,000 crore. settles dispute with loop, to restore calls in Mumbai
Within 24 hours of blocking incoming calls from loop Telecom users in Mumbai, Vodafone said it is restoring their connection to its network as the two companies have reached a settlement on interconnection charges.
“We have reached an agreement for payment settlement with loop Mobile. Accordingly the connection is being restored,” a Vodafone spokesperson said.
Vodafone has blocked incoming calls from loop, which has over 3 million users in Mumbai. The telecom major said these payments from loop were long overdue, forcing it to restrict calls.