The Delhi High Court has directed TRAI and telcos to strictly implement the TCCCPR regulations, which were framed in 2018 to curb the problem of unsolicited commercial communication (UCC) or spam call and messages.

The Telecom Commercial Communication Customer Preference Regulation (TCCCPR) was primarily issued to effectively deal with the nuisance of spam experienced by subscribers.

The latest Delhi High Court direction comes in response to a writ petition filed by Paytm Payments Bank Ltd (PPBL) & One97 Communications (OCL) last year.

It is expected that the strict and proper implementation of TCCCPR will ensure access of bulk SMS capacity to only Registered TeleMarketers (RTMs) and no unauthorised telemarketer or principal entities will be able to send any phishing SMSes and calls to users of digital financial services.

The Delhi High Court further directed all telecom operators (as access providers) in the country to adhere to the guidelines set by TRAI and take appropriate action against registered and unregistered telemarketers making or enabling fraudulent calls and SMSs.

PPBL and OCL had last year filed a writ petition in Delhi High Court seeking legal, policy regulatory directive to restrict the access of fraudsters from the bulk SMS packages sending fake messages and calls impersonating as Paytm companies. The petition highlighted that such fraudulent calls and SMSes not only result in a financial loss to its customers but also severely damages the reputation of Paytm as a brand.

Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) had supported Paytm and filed an intervention representing many payments system pperators to support stringent implementation of TCCCPR and building secure digital payments experience resulting in acceleration of adoption of digital payments.

Satish Kumar Gupta, CEO & Managing Director, Paytm Payments Bank Ltd, said in a statement, “Today’s decision by the Honourable Court will go a long way in safeguarding millions of Indians in the country who make digital payments and other online transactions. We strongly believe that all of us including regulator, government and access providers have to come together to fight the menace of fraudulent calls and SMSs in the country. We are sanguine that telcos will abide by the court’s order in true spirit. This is important to further reinforce the trust of citizens in digital transactions and help in building a truly digital and AtmaNirbhar Bharat.”

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