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According to a new rule by the government, new players in the telecom sector will not be able to sell the stakes for the initial three years of getting the licence.
"There shall be a lock-in period for sale of equity of a person whose share capital is 10 percent or more in the UAS (unified access service) licensee company," the Department of Telecom (DoT) said in a statement.
The restriction will be effective from the date the licence has been granted and be in place till completion of three years or till the fulfilment of all the roll-out obligations. DoT added that the invested amount in shareholding by the equity holder "shall not be reduced in any circumstances during the lock-in period".
Additional stakes may be issued by these companies via private placements or public issues, but dividend should not be paid off.
But, this is not applicable where a financial institution or bank sells shares pledged with it by a telecom operator as collateral in case of a default.
