Bharti Airtel’s Chairman and MD Sunil Mittal came down heavily against the recently concluded 3G auction process complaining that the process created an artificial scarcity.

Sunil Mittal said, “We welcomed the auction process for giving spectrum out. The auction design we never welcomed,” when asked about the operators initially welcoming the process. "The auction design, given that the auction will close when all 22 circles close, to my mind lends itself to mischief by some of the non-serious players," added Mittal.

Bharti Airtel has paid the highest among private operators for receiving 3G spectrum in 13 circles. It has paid Rs.12,295.46 crore in total.

Mittal said that the format of the auction where the auction remained open till the demand and supply became equal in all circles, created a situation of an artificial scarcity and drove the prices beyond reasonable levels.