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Court Rules on Sistema License

NEW DELHI —? Mobile phone carriers in India whose permits were revoked last year, including Russia's Sistema, must stop operations immediately unless they have won new rights to airwaves, the country's Supreme Court ruled on Friday according to three lawyers on the case.

The court last year ordered 122 permits held by eight carriers including the Indian units of? Sistema and Norway's Telenor, as well as India-based Idea Cellular and Tata Teleservices to be revoked after a massive scandal over the permits sale process in 2008.

At least three of the firms that had their permits revoked, including the Indian affiliate of Emirates Telecommunication Corp Ltd, have ceased operations since the court order, while others like Telenor and Idea Cellular bought airwaves in the November auction.

(Reuters)

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