Vodafone Idea (VI) shares surged over 8% to an intraday high of ₹8.39 apiece on Friday, September 19, as the Supreme Court deferred hearing the debt-laden telecom firm’s plea on AGR dues. Centre told Supreme Court it is not opposing the telco's AGR plea and said "some solution is required". "Not opposing Vodafone Idea plea, some solution is required, government is also an equity holder. Some solution may be required, subject to Supreme Court approval," Centre told the apex court, reported CNBC-TV18. Supreme Court will next hear Vodafone Idea case on Sept 26 on government's additional AGR demand."There has to be some finality to these proceedings," the apex court reportedly said. At 12 pm on September 19, Vodafone Idea shares were trading 6% higher at Rs 8.31 apiece after rising as high as Rs 8.42 intraday.
The telecom company had moved to the Supreme Court seeking reassessment of additional adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues last week. According to a news report, the company’s counsels had urged the court for an early hearing of the matter. The development has sparked a positive response among retail investors. 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 company has nearly 198 million users and more than 18,000 employees. Although the government’s conversion of over Rs 53,000 crore of dues into equity provided temporary relief, Vodafone Idea still needs fresh funding to remain competitive against market leaders Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel.