The Supreme Court today ordered Grameenphone to give Tk 2000 crore in three months to Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) as the govt agency claimed due Tk 12,580 crore.

The apex court said that if GP does not give Tk 2000 crore in three months it will stay the High Court order that issued injunction on BTRC's move to realize 12,580 crore due, Barrister Mehedi Hasan Chowdhury, a lawyer for GP, told The Daily Star.

A seven member bench of the Appellate Division headed by Chief Justice Syed Mahmud Hossain passed the order following a petition filed by BTRC seeking a stay on the HC order.

Meanwhile, BTRC's lawyer Barrister Khandakar Reza-E Raquib told this correspondent that it will be known after the release of full text of SC order whether it has given three month's time to GP to pay the money to BTRC.

He also said that if GP pays the money immediately it will be benefitted.

On November 14, Grameenphone has agreed to deposit Tk 200 crore with BTRC against its claim of Tk 12,580 crore.

On the other hand, a lawyer for the BTRC told the SC that Grameenphone should clear 50 percent of the Tk 12,580 crore due now.

The telecom operator claims that two top mobile carriers including Grameenphone owe the state Tk 13,447 crore in revenue share, taxes, and late fees until 2014, but the carriers said the amount was disputed.