KARACHI, June 8: Subscribers of a cellphone company on Wednesday complained of receiving a number of unwanted SMS text messages. The cellphone company, Mobilink, faces a hearing on Thursday at the PTA headquarters to which it has been asked to send representatives with “a copy of written arguments” to explain why their response to the April show-cause notice was unsatisfactory.

A subscriber told Dawn that he received a number of SMS text messages from those contacts whose cellphone numbers were in his mobile phone, adding that it was simple that the messages were not intended for him. “When I called them, they said they had never sent the messages. If they did send the messages, how come I received the messages which showed they had been sent by those contacts whose cellphone numbers were already in my mobile phone,” he wondered.

Another subscriber said he had also received a number of unwanted SMS text messages from some strangers. “I have no idea who is sending me these messages. It is evident from the text of messages that they are not intended for me,” he said. Some complained that SMS messages sent by strangers contained no text.

A few Mobilink subscribers said the news of SMS text problem was in addition to the issue of calls from wrong numbers.

“Sometimes I call people whose numbers are fed into my cellphone. So, I don’t have to dial their numbers. But my call gets connected to complete strangers. This is the kind of problem people used to face with old PTCL numbers. Since cellphone calls are more expensive than calls from land lines, Mobilink should compensate the subscribers who face this type of problem for no fault of theirs,” one suggested.

Interestingly, Mobilink knows nothing about the problems its subscribers face. When contacted, a spokesman for the cellphone company said he had no idea about such issues.

The regional director of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority, who was in Islamabad to attend the Mobilink hearing on Thursday, said he had received complaints from unhappy Mobilink subscribers about wrong numbers. He said the telecom regulator would look into the issue of unwanted SMS text messages.

The April 5 show-cause notice of the PTA was issued to Mobilink following a sharp rise in public complaints against the company.

It was based on the fourth quality of survey conducted by the PTA. The cellphone company was given 30 days to submit a reply. Mobilink submitted the reply on May 3.

The show-cause notice said: “The non-serious and non-cooperative attitude of Mobilink towards the determination and directions issued by the authority from time to time tantamount to severe violations by Mobilink of the existing regulatory framework and, is therefore, not acceptable to the authority.”

PTA officials told Dawn that if Mobilink’s arguments did not stand up to close scrutiny, proceedings could be initiated against the company, which might lead to the appointment of an administrator, or a levy of Rs350 million fine and termination of Mobilink’s licence under Section 23 of the Pakistan Telecommunication (Reorganization) Act, 1996.