Cable TV
Probe Punjab ‘cable mafia,’ demands minister, Fastway refutes charges
MUMBAI: Punjab minister Navjot Singh Sidhu has alleged that the private TV cable company Fastway Transmission Private Limited, under the “patronage” of the previous Akali government, had caused a loss of around Rs 6840 million to the state exchequer. Because of the political patronage, only Fastway monopolised the cable TV business in Punjab, he said, PTI reported.
The state government last Friday ordered a tax evasion notice to be slapped on the Fastway Cable which is said to be Punjab’s biggest TV transmission multi-system operator (MSO). FastWay, however, rejecting the charges, said that the company had permissions from all the departments concerned such as PWD, forest department, canal department, and railways etc. :The company is regular in payment of entertainment tax and there are no outstanding taxes due to tax theft by the company, Fastway CEO Peeush Mahajan said in a statement.
Sidhu meanwhile demanded a separate investigation into the alleged under-reporting of TV connections and cable operators engaged by Fastway. Of over 8,000 cable operators in the state, 6,500 were working for Fastway, he alleged. He demanded vigilance inquiry from the chief minister Amarinder Singh against what he called the “cable mafia”.
The local bodies minister said Fastway started with a paid-up capital of Rs 25 lakh, but earned a whopping Rs 30 crore profit in the first year itself. He alleged that only 1.25 lakh cable connections were shown in Punjab state as against the actual figure of 80 lakh — this was done to evade taxes, PTI added.
For 10 years, the state exchequer did not get even a penny in taxes, he said. No fee or tax was paid to the civic authorities, no entertainment tax was paid to the state or the Central government, he alleged. It is a unique case where the ruling family violated all government rules, he said in the state assembly.
Fastway MD Gurdeep Singh Kohli said the allegations of tax dues or under-reporting subscriber base were false. Most of the cable operators fall in the income bracket of less than Rs one million, and so were are exempt from paying service tax, he added. “The entertainment tax at the rate of Rs 15,000 that the government alleged we did not pay, is payable by cable operators, and not by MSOs like us,” Kohli said.
MUMBAI: When margins wobble, liquidity talks and in Q3 FY25-26, cash did most of the talking. Den Networks Limited closed the December quarter with consolidated revenue of Rs.251 crore, marginally higher than the previous quarter but down 4 per cent year-on-year, even as profitability stayed resilient on the back of strong cash reserves and disciplined cost control.
Subscription income softened to Rs.98 crore, slipping 3 per cent sequentially and 14 per cent from last year, while placement and marketing income offered some cheer, rising 15 per cent quarter-on-quarter to Rs.148 crore. Total costs climbed faster than revenue, up 7 per cent QoQ to Rs.238 crore, driven largely by higher content costs and operating expenses. As a result, EBITDA dropped sharply to Rs.13 crore from Rs.19 crore in Q2 and Rs.28 crore a year ago, pulling margins down to 5 per cent.
Yet, the bottom line refused to blink. Profit after tax stood at Rs.40 crore, up 15 per cent sequentially and only marginally lower than last year’s Rs.42 crore. A healthy Rs.57 crore in other income helped cushion operating pressure, keeping profit before tax at Rs.48 crore, broadly stable quarter-on-quarter despite the tougher cost environment.
The real headline-grabber, however, sits on the balance sheet. The company remains debt-free, with cash and cash equivalents swelling to Rs.3,279 crore as of December 31, 2025. Net worth rose to Rs.3,748 crore, while online collections accounted for 97 per cent of total receipts, underscoring strong cash discipline across operations, including subsidiaries.
In short, while Q3 showed signs of operating strain, the financial backbone remains solid. With zero gross debt, steady profits and a formidable cash war chest, the company enters the next quarter with flexibility firmly on its side proving that in uncertain markets, balance sheet strength can be the best growth strategy.
