M A I N   N E W S

Govt to review allotment
Petrol station file of George’s wife missing

New Delhi, April 6
The government today said it would review the allotment of a petrol station to Ms Lily George, wife of V. George, private secretary to Opposition leader Sonia Gandhi, against whom the CBI has registered a case for allegedly possessing assets disproportionate to known sources of income, even as the file pertaining to her case was ‘missing’ from the Petroleum Ministry.

Petroleum Minister Ram Naik said, “We would certainly like to find out if the compassionate grounds on which she was allotted the station in 1991 still exist after 10 years. The DDA recently sanctioned land for her.”

Stating that the file pertaining to her case was ‘misplaced’ and could not be traced Mr Naik said, “We have asked Hindustan Petroleum Corporation to find out from the party (Lily George) on what compassionate grounds she was given the station. She would certainly be knowing these.”

Asked if the government could review the case, Mr Naik said, “We would like to ascertain if the grounds are valid now on which the then minister (Satish Sharma) had allotted the station.”

Officials of the HPCL were not available for comments.

Meanwhile, ministry sources said that the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) had cleared the case for allotment of land to Ms Lily George for setting up a petrol station in East Delhi after drawing lots from all pending cases.

The ministry came to know about the case in the process of pursuing allotment of land for petrol station to Kargil war widows and for setting up gas stations for CNG in the Capital, sources said.

After the DDA informed ministry about the clearance of Mrs George’s case, Ram Naik asked officials to give him the file on which sanction for the station was given. PTI

V. George goes on leave

New Delhi, April 6
The Congress today confirmed that Mr Vincent George, personal assistant to party’s President Sonia Gandhi, has proceeded on leave for an unspecified period “on his own.”

Replying to questions by mediapersons here, party spokesman S. Jaipal Reddy said Mr George had applied for leave and Mrs Gandhi had sanctioned it. However, Mr George could not specify the leave period.

Asked about the petrol station allotted to his wife Lily George, Mr Reddy said it was given in 1990 and she had not applied for renewal. UNI