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Vodafone Idea shares which witnessed a little recovery are now trading nearly 4% lower again ahead of the SC hearing on AGR dues.

The AGR hearing is likely to begin around 11 am.

Vodafone Idea shares are off day’s low.

The stock, which declined up to 4% in trade today, is currently down 1.7%.

In July, the minister of state for communications, Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani, had told CNBC-TV18 that the Centre was not looking at extending any additional relief to the financially-stressed telecom company.

Referring to the 2021 support package, as per which around ₹53,000 crore of dues were converted into equity, giving the Centre a 49% stake, Pemmasani said, “”Whatever we wanted to do has already been done. Vodafone is up to their management… they know how to manage and it’s up to them to take it forward.”

Earlier this week, brokerage firm Citi called Vodafone Idea a “high-risk buy” in its note. It also has a target price of Rs 10 apiece.

Only 4 out of the 22 analysts having coverage on Vodafone Idea have a “buy” rating on the stock, six say “hold”, while 12 have a “sell” recommendation.

Debt-laden Vodafone Idea’s plea is against the Department of Telecom’s (DoT) additional AGR demand. It petitioned the Supreme Court to set DoT’s demand for ₹9,450 crore in additional AGR dues, arguing that it goes beyond the scope of the top court’s previous ruling on AGR liabilities.

As per reports, the DoT had previously filed an affidavit defending its stance, saying the additional dues represented a ‘gap’ from previous accounting and was not a reassessment. It maintained that these liabilities emerged after the competition of financial accounts and were not covered under the Supreme Court’s 2019 judgment.

Of the ₹9,450 crore, a total of ₹2,774 crore comprises the FY18-19 dues of the merged identity Vodafone Idea and Idea group, after their consolidation in August 2018. As much as ₹5,675 crore is with regards to the pre-merger Vodafone Group.

The telecom company contested the calculation, claiming some amounts were duplicated and sought fresh reconciliation starting from pre-FY17.

The Supreme Court observed there has to be some finality to these proceedings. It then deferred Vodafone idea’ plea to Friday, September 26.

The Centre told the top court that it does not oppose the telecom company’s plea on adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues.

However, some solution is required as the Centre is an equity holder as well.

The Centre is the largest shareholder in Vodafone Idea, holding a 49% stake, but is not classified as a promoter.

Vodafone Idea shares declined up to 4% to hit an intraday low of 8.32 apiece today.

The stock is currently down 2.7%

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