Buckle up, because the Comptroller and Auditor General’s Report No. 1 of 2025 just served the coldest, hardest truth bomb of 2026. While Modi was busy tweeting about wallet PLATFORM' target='_blank' title='digital-Latest Updates, Photos, Videos are a click away, CLICK NOW'>digital india and 5g revolutions, his government was quietly strangling bharat sanchar nigam limited (BSNL) — the public sector telecom backbone — and rolling out the red carpet for reliance Jio. The numbers aren’t allegations. They’re audited, signed, sealed, and devastating. ₹1,757 crore straight-up vanished into thin air. And it all flowed one way: toward mukesh Ambani’s empire.
1. The ₹1,757 Crore “Whoopsie” That Wasn’t an Accident
From 2014 to 2024, bsnl let jio use its passive infrastructure (towers, cables, land) without collecting the extra technical charges it was legally owed. Not a rounding error. Not a paperwork glitch. One thousand seven hundred and fifty-seven crore rupees. Gone. The CAG calls it a straight-up failure to bill. We call it the most expensive “oversight” in indian corporate history.
2. The Escalation Clause That Never Escalated
There was a master Service Agreement with a clear “Escalation Clause” — prices were supposed to rise every year. bsnl just… forgot? jio walked away with an extra ₹29 crore in pure profit. Meanwhile, bsnl workers haven’t seen a proper salary hike in years and are protesting in the streets. Priorities, right?
3. ₹80.64 Crore Worth of Premium Cables… Now Rusting in Godowns
BSNL bought high-quality cables under proper planning (or so they claimed). Result? They’re lying unused, turning into expensive scrap metal. ₹80 crore of public money is literally rotting while jio rolls out fiber like it’s diwali lights. This isn’t mismanagement. This is sabotage with extra steps.
4. Modi as Jio’s Unofficial Brand Ambassador
Remember 2016? jio launch. Full-page newspaper ads with narendra Modi’s smiling face plastered everywhere. Never before had a sitting prime minister become a private company’s walking billboard. At the exact same time, bsnl was denied 4G spectrum for seven long years. jio got the fast-track. Coincidence? The CAG report makes it look like a business plan.
5. Make in India… But Only for BSNL
Private players could import any foreign tech they wanted. BSNL? Forced to use only “Make in India” equipment. That single rule delayed their 4G rollout by years and handed the entire market to jio on a platter. The government promoted jio in railways and airports while tying BSNL’s hands behind its back. Predatory pricing? The government looked the other way while jio bled the market dry.
6. The Final Gut Punch
BSNL unions screamed warnings for years. CAG has now put it in black and white: this wasn’t incompetence. This was deliberate. One public sector company was systematically dismantled so that one private player could dominate. “Digital India” was never about connecting every Indian. It was about connecting every rupee to one address in Mumbai.
Bottom line:
The same government that screams “nationalism” every five minutes just got caught gifting ₹1,757 crore to the richest man in Asia while the national telecom backbone bleeds out. CAG didn’t just audit numbers — it audited intent. And the intent is crystal clear. If this isn’t the biggest corporate-political scam of the decade, then what the hell is?
1. The ₹1,757 Crore “Whoopsie” That Wasn’t an Accident
From 2014 to 2024, bsnl let jio use its passive infrastructure (towers, cables, land) without collecting the extra technical charges it was legally owed. Not a rounding error. Not a paperwork glitch. One thousand seven hundred and fifty-seven crore rupees. Gone. The CAG calls it a straight-up failure to bill. We call it the most expensive “oversight” in indian corporate history.
2. The Escalation Clause That Never Escalated
There was a master Service Agreement with a clear “Escalation Clause” — prices were supposed to rise every year. bsnl just… forgot? jio walked away with an extra ₹29 crore in pure profit. Meanwhile, bsnl workers haven’t seen a proper salary hike in years and are protesting in the streets. Priorities, right?
3. ₹80.64 Crore Worth of Premium Cables… Now Rusting in Godowns
BSNL bought high-quality cables under proper planning (or so they claimed). Result? They’re lying unused, turning into expensive scrap metal. ₹80 crore of public money is literally rotting while jio rolls out fiber like it’s diwali lights. This isn’t mismanagement. This is sabotage with extra steps.
4. Modi as Jio’s Unofficial Brand Ambassador
Remember 2016? jio launch. Full-page newspaper ads with narendra Modi’s smiling face plastered everywhere. Never before had a sitting prime minister become a private company’s walking billboard. At the exact same time, bsnl was denied 4G spectrum for seven long years. jio got the fast-track. Coincidence? The CAG report makes it look like a business plan.
5. Make in India… But Only for BSNL
Private players could import any foreign tech they wanted. BSNL? Forced to use only “Make in India” equipment. That single rule delayed their 4G rollout by years and handed the entire market to jio on a platter. The government promoted jio in railways and airports while tying BSNL’s hands behind its back. Predatory pricing? The government looked the other way while jio bled the market dry.
6. The Final Gut Punch
BSNL unions screamed warnings for years. CAG has now put it in black and white: this wasn’t incompetence. This was deliberate. One public sector company was systematically dismantled so that one private player could dominate. “Digital India” was never about connecting every Indian. It was about connecting every rupee to one address in Mumbai.
Bottom line:
The same government that screams “nationalism” every five minutes just got caught gifting ₹1,757 crore to the richest man in Asia while the national telecom backbone bleeds out. CAG didn’t just audit numbers — it audited intent. And the intent is crystal clear. If this isn’t the biggest corporate-political scam of the decade, then what the hell is?
Save BSNL. Or at least stop pretending “Digital India” was ever for the people. The mask is off. The report is out. And the internet is not forgetting this one.
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