Mobile operator Grameen-phone yesterday sought the government’s intervention to resolve a dispute with the telecom regulator over unpaid revenue and tax.
On Monday, Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission asked the operator to pay Tk 3,034 crore in unpaid revenue, accumulated interest payment and tax.
GP disagreed with the regulator. But it was not clear how much the operator would have to pay eventually.
Without specifying numbers, GP said it would pay “any amount within existing business under normal rules”.
Kazi Monirul Kabir, chief communications officer of GP, again refuted the regulator’s claim and said: “The numbers are based on wrong assumption.”
“We don’t see this is the issue of GP alone. It is an issue of the entire industry. We seek intervention from the government,” Kabir said.
GP sent a letter to the telecom ministry yesterday, seeking help from the government to defuse the dispute, the GP official said.
He said telecom is not an isolated industry, so the issues should be observed in a holistic approach.
“The way the problem is getting serious, there is scope for intervention by different authorities of the government,” he added.
Meanwhile, BTRC set a meeting with the operator for October 10 to defend its position with all supporting records it has.
A high official of the telecom ministry said the ministry will definitely look into the matter.
-With The Daily Star input
