Karachi internet firm ordered to pay Rs50,000 in damages to consumer for poor service

KARACHI: A court in Karachi on Friday ordered a private internet service provider to pay Rs50,000 in damages to a consumer over poor service.

The Consumer Protection Court South issued the ruling on a complaint filed by a consumer alleging poor internet service and inadequate customer support.

The consumer, identified as Khalique Ahmed, filed a petition with the court, saying that he had lodged multiple complaints with the company over poor internet service. He alleged that despite repeated complaints, the company failed to address the issue.

In its verdict, the court directed the company to pay Rs50,000 in damages to the consumer and also ordered it to deposit a Rs5,000 fine into the national exchequer.

The court further ordered the internet service provider to improve its service quality and ensure uninterrupted internet access for consumers.

In March, Pakistan generated $510 million (Rs142.6 billion) from the landmark auction of Next Generation Mobile Services (NGMS) spectrum.

The announcement was made by Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) Chairman Hafeez Ur Rehman during a press briefing alongside Minister for Information Technology and Telecommunication Shaza Fatima Khawaja on March 12 following the completion of the multi-band spectrum auction process.

He said that 480 MHz of spectrum was sold during the bidding held on March 10, generating $507 million in revenue, equivalent to about Rs142 billion for the national exchequer.

Later, a position assignment auction to determine the exact placement of 5G spectrum blocks acquired by operators generated an additional $3 million following multiple rounds of bidding, bringing the total proceeds to $510 million (Rs142.6 billion).

At the time, the PTA chief said the government had fulfilled its responsibility by conducting the auction, adding that it was now the telecom operators' turn to transform the spectrum into improved services for consumers.