Vodafone Idea receives Rs 10.76 crore penalty order under GST Act, seeks rectification

According to VIL, the penalty amount of Rs 10,76,56,733 was specified in the order received on January 3, 2024.

Vodafone Idea Limited (VIL) announced on January 4 that it has been served with an order under the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, imposing a penalty of Rs 10.76 crore. The telecom company expressed its disagreement with the order and stated its intention to seek rectification and reversal.

"Pursuant to Regulation 30 read with Clause 20 of Para A of Part A of Schedule III of SEBI Listing Regulations, we submit the details of Order received by the Company under the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017. The Company does not agree with the Order and will take appropriate action(s) for rectification/ reversal of the same," Vodafone Idea said in its exchange filing.

According to VIL, the penalty amount of Rs 10,76,56,733 was specified in the order received on January 3, 2024.

The telecom company said the contravention is over "Alleged improper transfer of CENVAT credit to the GST regime."

As per the latest information provided by the Telecom Authority of India (TRAI), Vodafone Idea faced a loss of 20.4 lakh wireless users in October.  The troubled telecom company which has a 19.59 percent market share, recorded a loss of 20.4 lakh users against a loss of 7.5 lakh users in September 2023.

The telecom company was in the news recently when its management mentioned that the company's promoters will infuse a sum of up to Rs 2,000 crore by the end of the December quarter.

For the quarter ended September, Vodafone Idea’s losses widened to Rs 8,737.9 crore against Rs 7,595.5 crore in the same quarter last year. Its revenue from operations stood at Rs 10,716.3 crore, rising nearly 1 percent from 10,614.6 crore in the corresponding quarter.