Vodafone Idea shares tank 15% lower circuit following report on Cabinet approving relief package

The outcome will be decided by a committee appointed by the government.

Sources said that, in addition, the AGR dues pertaining to FY18 and FY19 (already finalised by the Supreme Court order of 2020) will be payable by Vodafone Idea over FY26 to FY31, without change.

The steps will protect the interest of the government, having about 49% stake in the telco, enable orderly payment of dues to the Centre by way of spectrum auction charges and AGR dues, ensure competition in the sector and protect the interest of 20 crore VIL consumers.

At 2:45 PM, Vodafone Idea shares were down 15.01% to touch a low of ₹10.81 on NSE.

However, the stock exchanges have sought clarification from "Vodafone Idea Limited with respect to recent news item captioned Vodafone Idea AGR dues of ₹87,695 crore frozen by cabinet; Stock gives up gains. The response from the Company is awaited."

Vodafone Idea AGR case

Vodafone Idea owes nearly ₹83,400 crore in AGR dues, and the annual payments currently stand at ₹18,000 crore, scheduled from March 2026. When combined with interest and penalties, Vodafone Idea’s dues stand at more than ₹2 lakh crore.

As per the report, one of the relief options is an additional two-year pause on paying the statutory dues under moratorium at present. The DoT has proposed to give the company extra time to pay its dues, along with smaller annual payouts and a waiver on penalties and interest penalties on AGR payment, the report said.

The minister noted that the ministry is currently examining the legal boundaries set by the court. “Judgement needs to be evaluated from a point of view of what can be done and what cannot be done. We cannot cross the border of the SC judgement."

Scindia suggested that the government may complete its assessment and issue recommendations within the next couple of weeks, with the details of the relief package likely to be announced by year-end.

In November 2025, in a significant relief to Vodafone Idea, the Supreme Court allowed the Centre to reconsider and reconcile the telecom company’s pending adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues, clarifying that the review would not be limited to AGR dues for the 2016–17 financial year.

On October 27, the bench had said that the "prayer in the petition itself restricts its claim only to the additional AGR demand raised by the respondent for the period up to the Financial Year 2016-17."

Vodafone Idea has filed the fresh plea against the Department of Telecommunications' (DoT) fresh demand of ₹5,606 crore relating to the financial year 2016-17. Earlier, the Centre had said efforts were on to arrive at a resolution with the company.

Earlier this year, in a setback to telecom majors, including Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea, the apex court had refused to review its 2021 order rejecting their pleas for a rectification of alleged errors in the calculation of the AGR dues payable by them.