New Delhi, Aug 27: Taken aback by the 11th hour deferral of CAS in Delhi despite “sincere” preparations, cable operators are looking at legal options to fight what they perceive as the government’s “illogical” move. After the initial knee-jerk reaction by some operators to hike cable fees to Rs 450 in South Delhi, the predominant feeling on the day-after is that it is not the consumers who should be penalised, the government needs to be tackled.
While the Cable Operators United Front and the Federation of Independent Cable Operators denied that the operators they represented will hike prices, the others maintained there would be a ‘pass-through’ cost of deferral, but that it may not be uniform and whopping like Rs 450.
Vikki Choudhary of the National Cable and Telecom Association (NCTA) said he is consulting legal experts on the issue. NCTA and the Cable Operators Federation of India (COFI) are weighing the merits of the ‘Promisory Estoppel’ under which individuals can claim damages over losses incurred due to investments made on the promise of a policy for which notifications have been issued.
Choudhary said, “We are seeking legal opinion as we are not in a position to absorb the losses. We have all taken loans and the interest accruing on them have to be made up.”
Bureau Report