SC stays HC order to remove cell towers near Rajasthan prisons

New Delhi, May 29: The Supreme Court on Monday put on hold a Rajasthan High Court order directing mobile phone operators to remove their cell towers from within 500 metres of jail premises across the state.

A bench of Justice A.K. Sikri and Justice Deepak Gupta stayed the high court order as senior counsel Kapil Sibal told the bench that removal of cell towers would affect 80 lakh people and would have a cascading effect.

Sibal told the court that even the Department of Telecommunications and the government had earlier supported the telecom service providers.

The bench also said that no coercive steps would be taken by the authorities.