An adjudicating officer appointed by the government can take action on a voluntary basis or on the basis of a complaint against any person who violates the license conditions or the allocation mechanism. The officer is empowered to send notice to such person and action will be taken on the basis of the reply. The rules are part of the proposed rules on adjudication and appeals notified under the Telecommunications Act. The rules will come into force in 30 days.
The government has also notified rules for a mechanism whereby any entity can voluntarily disclose any violation of the rules that it may have committed and the steps it has taken or intends to take to abate such violations. If the adjudicating officer accepts the voluntary undertaking, no action will be taken for non-compliance.
Any organisation may submit a voluntary undertaking even after the adjudicator has commenced an investigation.
However, action may be taken if the entity or the transferee fails to comply with the terms of the voluntary undertaking entered into by the Adjudicating Officer. According to the proposed rules, any person aggrieved by the order of the Adjudicating Officer may appeal to the Designated Appellate Committee within 30 days, together with a copy of the order appealed against. An appeal has to be filed on payment of a fee of Rs 10,000.
“The decision of the designated appeals committee should be in writing and include a concise basis for the decision,” the proposed rules state.
Any person who knowingly makes a false statement is punishable under Section 229 of the Indian Act, 2023.
As per the rules, all amounts received as fines and fees will be transferred to the Consolidated Fund of India.
The Central government may notify a portal for digital implementation of these rules, including providing facility for filing grievances, appeals, voluntary undertakings, notices, publication of orders, virtual hearings etc.
The Government may appoint one or more Judges as it may deem fit. The Judges shall be employees of the Central Government and each Judge shall have his own Secretariat to assist him in the performance of his duties.
In addition to the Tribunals, there will be Appellate Committees, the members of which will be Central Government officials. Like the Tribunals, each Committee will have a Secretariat to assist it in its functioning.
Under the proposed rules, adjudicators must generally complete their investigations within 90 calendar days from the date of issuance of the notice. In some cases, this period could be extended to 120 days.
