BTRC to ask Citycell to clear dues

The telecom regulator will ask Citycell to clear dues of Tk 258.24 crore in two weeks, or will sue the company for failure to pay. 

A letter will be issued to the country's oldest mobile operator soon, according to a decision taken at a meeting of Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission, said an

official.

Citycell has not cleared any government fees, including licence renewal charges, in the past two years, the regulator's documents show.

It last renewed its licence in 2011 and paid just one instalment out of three, leaving Tk 229 crore unpaid.

BTRC is also yet to receive Tk 12.34 crore in spectrum fees, Tk 10.98 crore in revenue sharing, and Tk 5.92 crore for the social obligation fund.

In November last year, BTRC served a legal notice to Citycell, asking why its licence should not be cancelled for non-payment of fees. 

In response, the operator said there was no reason the licence should be cancelled as they paid 49 percent of the allocated fees and also received lower than their allocated share of spectrum.