New Delhi, Nov 14 (IANS) In wake of his criticism of the Indian regulatory environment where he is said to have commented on “unsupportive laws”, Vodafone CEO Nick Read, in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, has said his company will stay invested in India given the right conditions.
“You have my word that Vodafone wishes to continue it’s long history in India given the right conditions,” Read said.
He said he believed in the country’s potential and also in the telecom sector and aligned with the government’s Digital India vision.
“We remain invested in India’s growth story and India continues to remain a key market for us,” Read said in the letter.
What prompted Read’s current remark is not known though his JV partner – Idea chairman K. Birla – is learnt to have expressed dissatisfaction over Read’s public criticism of government policies as well as the government expressing resentment on Read presenting India as a bad investment destination.
On Wednesday, the DoT issued letters to telcos including Vodafone Idea to pay pending AGR dues on a self assessment basis. Vodafone Idea has to pay Rs 28,400 crore as just licence fee and if spectrum fees are included it could have to cough up Rs 40,000 crore.
VIL is to announce Q2 results today.
At 2.30 p.m., shares of Vodafone Idea were trading at Rs 3.03, down 18.1 per cent.
–IANS
ana/kr