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“I Was Pressurized To Sell My Company To A Particular Person”: Aircel’s Founder C Sivasankaran On Congress Era of Doing Business

Aircel, once a prominent player in India’s telecom sector, stood out for its innovation and connectivity. Founded by Chinnakannan Sivasankaran, the company gained significant traction but faced considerable challenges, including intense competition and regulatory obstacles. Aircel exited the market in February 2018.

In a recent episode of Raj Shamani’s podcast ‘Figuring Out – The Real Reason Why Aircel Failed – The Rise & Fall Of Aircel,‘ Sivasankaran shared his experiences from a decade ago, during the UPA era, contrasting them with the current business environment under the Modi regime.

Sivasankaran recalled a time when burgeoning businesses in India faced substantial pressure. He highlighted the coercive nature of these pressures, stating, “If your business started growing, you were pressured to ‘sell to a particular person’.”

When asked about the sale of Aircel and his earnings from it, Sivasankaran mentioned, “I just made a partly sum of ₹3400 crores. If I would have sold it to AT&T, I would have got 8 Billion.” He explained that he couldn’t sell it to others back then because “India was not like this a decade ago. Today, no one can pressure you.” Host Shamani asked, “why didn’t you sell it?” Sivasankaran replied that “I can’t. Because India was not like this. Today no one can pressurize you.” The host interrupted and asked, “But, earlier it was like that”, Sivasankaran replied, “Absolutely!”

Later Sivasankaran added, “That was 10 years back. Now you build a business, no one can pressurize you. Now it is liberalised India. You can do what you want.

Regarding Aircel’s exit from the market, the company shut down due to financial difficulties. Malaysia’s Maxis Telecom, which acquired a 74 percent stake in Aircel for USD 1.08 billion in 2005, owned the company. By 2017, Aircel was grappling with severe financial issues and eventually filed for bankruptcy in 2018.

As of October 2019, Aircel owed approximately ₹12,389 crore to the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) in license fees and spectrum usage charges. The company attempted to sell its assets, including its tower business, to pay off its debts but failed to find a buyer and went into liquidation.

(With Inputs From FPJ)

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