The Madras High Court to-day [November 14, Madras] struck down the revised higher telephone tariffs holding them to be “arbitrary, unreasonable and unjust.” Mr. Justice T. Venkatadri, delivering the judgment, said that to his mind the imposition of fee for each extra call constituted an “intolerable burden.” The Department had no power to impose unconstitutional conditions and cause inconvenience and suffering to the citizens who could afford to use telephones for transacting their business.
The imposition of the fee manifested “a spirit of unfriendliness towards telephone owners.” This was mischievous and productive of hostility. His Lordship observed while disposing of a writ petition which sought a direction to the General Manager, Madras Telephones, to forbear from enforcing the revised telephone rates which came into force in the middle of January, 1966.