ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) has directed Zong to return more than Rs2 billion collected incorrectly from its customers and abide by the decision of the telecom sector regulator in this regard.

Zong filed an appeal against the decision of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), directing it to refund Rs2.02bn collected from customers on account of service/maintenance/cards/ operational fee charges from April 26, 2019, to July 12, 2019.

Justice Mian Gul Hassan Aurangzeb dismissed Zong’s appeal, upholding the PTA’s order to refund Rs2.02bn to customers.

The court observed in its decision, “Cellular mobile operators including the appellant (Zong), had been charging Rs10 from customers each time they purchased and used a prepaid card valuing Rs100 as assistance/maintenance/administrative service charges”.

Justice Mian Gul said that the Supreme Court, in its order, expressed that the service charges could not have been validly and legally imposed on the amounts loaded by users of mobile phone devices.”

The IHC noted that on March, 5, 2018, the Supreme Court took suo motu of a complaint by the public against unreasonable and high amount of tax/other charges deducted on topping up or charging of the balance on the use of prepaid cards by customers.

The apex court, in its interlocutory order on Nov 6, 2018, expressed its prima facie view that the service charges could not have been validly and legally imposed on the amounts loaded by users of mobile phone devices, later the Supreme Court extended the same relief to the post-paid consumers of the cellular companies.

The IHC order highlighted that the telecos informed the Supreme Court on March 27, 2019, that they had stopped levying/imposing and collecting service/maintenance charges and did not intend to do so in future.

Whereas, Zong, in its response to PTA, on April 4, 2019, maintained that it had never stated that the cellular mobile operators had given up their right to charge service/maintenance charges.

After the Supreme Court order, the PTA issued letters on July 8, 2019,

asking the telecos, including Zong, to provide complete details of service/maintenance charges recovered from April 24, 2019.

However, Zong did not give the relevant details to the PTA. Later, the telecom regulator directed Zong to refund the collected amount to all its subscribers, and the refund should

be made available in the form of a balance amount without any validity restriction.

The PTA had warned Zong that failure to comply with the said direction by Sept 13, 2019 would result in the initiation of proceedings in accordance with the relevant laws, but Zong filed an appeal against the PTA’s directive on Sept 24, 2019.

Published in Dawn, December 29th, 2024