Grameenphone owner sends legal notice to president for payment arbitration

Telenor Group that owns Bangladesh’s largest mobile phone operator, Grameenphone, has sent a legal notice to President Abdul Hamid seeking arbitration over a Tk 125.8 billion payment dispute.

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 19 Dec 2019, 10:34 AM
Updated : 19 Dec 2019, 11:32 AM

“The notice was sent through a law farm in Singapore. This is really unfortunate,” Telecoms Minister Mustafa Jabbar told reporters in Dhaka on Thursday.

“It is unacceptable that a company running its business in Bangladesh will send a legal notice to our president and pressure us to go for arbitration,” Jabbar told the media on Thursday.

“The highest authority in the government is aware of the notice being served,” Jabbar said.

“We shouldn’t worry about the notice because all they want is to go for arbitration, to which we’re open. In Bangladesh, one has to file a case in the court and wait. There’s no scope for out-of-court arbitration,” said the telecom minister adding the government consulted legal experts on the issue.

“We can have arbitration if the court orders us. They can’t seek justice in any other country defying the law of the land where they’re running business. We’re on the right path.”

Grameenphone may opt for going to the international court if there is no arbitration, said the minister.

“However, I feel it won’t be fruitful for them to go the international court if they lose the case here in the Bangladesh court.”

“At the end of the day, they have to run the business in Bangladesh. Even the international court won’t allow them to run business defying the country’s law.”

“We’re sympathetic to them and willing to have a discussion. We’re open to any initiative without harming our national interests,” Jabbar said.

Robi, another operator, proposed to withdraw the case, the minister said adding the government will follow the court’s order on the GP issue. 

“We didn’t file the case but it was the operators who did. We can have a discussion once they withdraw the case, but not before that as it would be a contempt of court.”

“We can’t have talks with Grameenphone as long as they don’t follow the court verdict. The court ordered GP to pay Tk 20 billion. The court will decide on the next step once they pay the amount. We can have a discussion if Robi withdraws the case,” said Jabbar.

In a statement, Cathrine Stang Lund, spokeswoman for Telenor Group that owns Grameenphone, 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,” Lund said. 

“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.”