Mukesh Ambani's Jio advises Vodafone, Bharti Airtel on how to clear dues

New Delhi : Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd said that there is no move by the government to provide financial relief to rival telecom operators, claiming that they have adequate resource to funds.

Bharti Airtel Ltd. can easily raise Rs. 40,000 crore ($5.7 billion) by selling some of its assets or shares, while Vodafone Idea Ltd. has no dearth of resources to pay the government its dues, Reliance Jio said in a statement dated November 1 and issued Sunday.

The Supreme Court had ordered the telecom operators to pay Rs. 49,990 crore, there due amount.

If Airtel liquidates "small parts of its assets or issues 15-20 per cent new equity," in its Indus Tower business it can easily raise the funds, Kapoor Singh Guliani, president for regulatory affairs at Reliance Jio, said in the letter. Vodafone India also has stake in Indus Towers, "thus there is no dearth of sources to pay" their dues, he said.

Airtel's tower business operates more than 1,63,000 mobile-phone towers across India.

All operators should be mandated to deposit applicable amounts within the three-month time period, as mandated by the court, Reliance said.