The Supreme Court has held that the power of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) to issue directions under Section 13 of the TRAI Act, 1997 is a regulatory and administrative function and not an adjudicatory one. The Supreme Court held that TRAI can issue regulatory directions and seek compliance with them, but it cannot finally adjudicate disputes between service providers. That function belongs exclusively to the TDSAT under Section 14 of the TRAI Act. The disobedience of a lawful direction issued by TRAI under the Act attracts criminal liability under Section 29 of the TRAI Act. Supreme Court upholds TRAI's broad regulation-making powerCourt also examined the scope of TRAI's regulation-making power under Section 36 of the Act.