Telenor Group, parent company of Bangladesh's leading mobile phone operator Grameenphone (GP), has sent a legal notice to President Abdul Hamid for arbitration of Tk12,579 crore audit claim with telecom regulator BTRC.
Posts, Telecommunications and Information Technology Minister Mustafa Jabbar said this while talking to journalists at his office in Dhaka on Thursday.
"This is unacceptable that GP sent a legal notice to the president. The country's apex court ordered GP to pay Tk2,000 crore in three months. We will not go for negotiation with GP until it complies with the order," he said.
The minister said GP also hinted it might go to international court if there is no arbitration.
"As GP already lost in the country, international court would not be of any help," he said.
Mustafa Jabbar also said another mobile phone company Robi, also in audit dispute of Tk867.23 crore with the telecom regulator, BTRC (Bangladesh Telecom Regulatory Commission), expressed interest to withdraw its case regarding the matter and sit in negotiation table.
However, in a statement on Thursday, Cathrine Stang Lund, director of Group Communication Asia, Telenor Group, said: "GP is not a party to this process. For Telenor Group it is important to protect its assets in Bangladesh.
"Telenor has sent a notice to seek resolution of a dispute and invited the Government of Bangladesh to meet to discuss the matter and work towards a constructive solution.
"The BIT process itself encourages dialogue, and Telenor still believes the best way forward is that the authorities and the operators agree on an amicable and transparent solution to the disputed audit," it said.
