In a statement COAI said the recent conduct of MTNL was a flagrant violation of the assurance given by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in October last in a meeting of Federation of Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Ficci) here.

COAI said cellular operators have acceded to all terms and conditions of the migration package, withdrawn all legal proceedings against government and welcomed the technology neutral policy for cellular service.

MTNL's reluctance to accede to TRAI's request to provide cost clarifications and refusal to set up separate subsidiary for cellular services gave suspicions on anti-competitive practices and the intention for cross-subsidise the mobile phone service. "MTNL's attitude of disdain towardsregulatory process and its proposed actions against the authority are serious blows to investor confidence," it said, adding, "No investor, foreign or domestic, will be prepared to fund private telecom projects if the dominant operator is not going to subject itself to regulatory process."