Telenor wants Chandra to step down as Unitech Wireless head

Norway's Telenor said on Wednesday it has requested its India joint venture chairman Sanjay Chandra to step down from his post, following charges against him in a multi-billion dollar telecoms licensing scandal.

Chandra is the managing director of Unitech Ltd, which is Telenor's partner in their India mobile joint venture Unitech Wireless. Telenor owns a controlling stake in the venture.

Telenor said in a statement it had asked Unitech to name a replacement for Sanjay Chandra for as long as the 2G telecoms court case is ongoing in India.

A Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court earlier on Wednesday rejected bail applications of five executives, including that of Chandra.

A lawyer for the CBI said the executives would remain in jail until a higher court granted bail.