Supreme Court to hear Vodafone plea over additional AGR demands on October 27

The Supreme Court on Monday adjourned to October 27 a writ petition filed by Vodafone Idea Limited challenging additional demands raised by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) towards Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR) dues for the period up to FY 2016–17 [Vodafone Idea Limited v. Union of India].A Bench of Chief Justice of India (CJ) BR Gavai and Justice Vinod Chandran adjourned the plea on Solicitor General Tushar Mehta's request. The plea has been adjourned four times since September 2025. .The writ petition filed by Vodafone arises from the DoT issuing fresh additional demands towards AGR dues for the period up to FY 2016–17. These demands are being contested on the ground that they are contrary to the Supreme Court’s earlier orders of July 2020 and September 2020, which had crystallised all AGR liabilities for that period.The company point4d out that by the Court’s directions, its total liability had been finalised at ₹58,254 crore up to FY 2016–17 and the Court had barred any recalculation, self-assessment, or reassessment of dues. Despite this, DoT has continued to raise further demands for the same period, describing them as “above and beyond” the crystallised AGR dues and subject to further revisions through departmental assessments, CAG audits or court cases.According to Vodafone, DoT’s subsequent claims now exceed ₹5,960 crore. For instance, an August 2023 show-cause-cum-demand sought around ₹292 crore for FY 2015–16. More recently, an August 2025 letter from DoT computed dues of approximately ₹9,450 crore up to FY 2018–19, of which nearly ₹5,606 crore (as of March 31, 2025) pertained to the already settled period up to FY 2016–17. Vodafone Idea submitted that if spectrum usage charges for the same cut-off are also included, the disputed component rises to nearly ₹6,800 crore..The company argued that while the DoT continues to assert the right to raise additional demands, operators themselves have not been permitted to correct what they describe as clerical and arithmetical errors in the original assessments. Earlier applications by Vodafone Idea for reconciliation of such errors were rejected by the Supreme Court in July 2021 and again at the review stage in January 2025.The petition, therefore, seeks quashing of the additional demands and enforcement of the earlier Supreme Court orders, contending that either the dues for the period up to FY 2016–17 must be treated as completely crystallised, or else a fair reconciliation exercise should be directed in line with the Deduction Verification Guidelines of February 2020..Vodafone Idea was represented by Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi..Solicitor General Tushar Mehta appeared for the Central government..In September 2020, the Supreme Court had allowed a 10-year staggered payment schedule of AGR dues. However, in July 2021, the Court rejected pleas for re-computation of dues, holding that there could be no reassessment or self-correction. Vodafone Idea’s curative petition—a final remedy alleging miscarriage of justice—was dismissed.