New Delhi, December 5
A compromise formula on the politically contentious issue of disinvesting government equity in oil sector PSUs appears to have been thrashed out by the Centre today with the Cabinet Committee on Disinvestment, (CCD) arriving at a mutually agreeable and unanimous decision on the matter.
Today’s CCD meeting assumes significance as it comes two days ahead of the expiry of the three-month period agreed upon by the Cabinet earlier to discuss in detail the finer contours of disinvesting government equity in oil sector PSUs.
The meeting, which was chaired by Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee at his residence, was attended by Deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani, External Affairs Minister Yashwant Sinha, Finance Minister Jaswant Singh, Disinvestment Minister Arun Shourie and Petroleum Minister Ram Naik.
Mr Naik, who has been a vocal opponent of the disinvestment programme, told waiting newspersons that the decision of the CCD was “unanimous.”
Mr Shourie said a detailed statement would be made on the floor of the House next week and the government’s proposed plan of action elaborated upon then. After the hour-long meeting, Mr Shourie merely said, “A unanimous view was arrived at and reported to the Prime Minister who directed me to make a statement in Parliament.”
On September 6 this year, the CCD had decided to postpone any decision on the disinvestment of state-owned oil refining and marketing majors HPCL and BPCL by three months. The decision to defer the process followed a series of arguments both for and against the disinvestment programme.
The ministers of the parent department under which the PSUs were administratively controlled were among the most vociferous opponents of the proposed
disinvestment. They included Minister for Chemicals and Fertilisers Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa, Coal and Mines Minister Uma Bharati and Mr Ram Naik.
Mr George Fernandes had also questioned the process of
disinvestment on the grounds that passing over management control in oil sector companies to private hands could give rise to security concerns in times of external emergency.
