In a new twist to the row over NTPC's gas contract with Reliance Industries, Oil Ministry is understood to have informed the PM's Office that its counsel has retracted the earlier statement that said the contract was not concluded.
NEW DELHI: In a new twist to the row over NTPC's gas contract with Reliance Industries, Oil Ministry is understood to have informed the Prime Minister's Office that its counsel has retracted the earlier statement that said the contract was not concluded.
The reported statement made before the Bombay High Court by Justice (Retd) T S Doabia, the senior counsel representing GoI, that there was no concluded contract between NTPC and RIL was not authorised by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas and it was neither part of his brief provided by the ministry nor written submissions made by the government, ministry is understood to have said in a letter to the PMO.
The PMO had sought comments from the petroleum ministry on issues raised by former Member of Parliament Dipankar Mukherjee.
However, the lawyers for Anil Ambani led Reliance Natural and Resources Limited Mualla and Mualla said they have not received any notice of mention from the Bombay High Court.
As a matter of procedure, any mention made in the Court between two dates of hearing can only happen upon the concerned parties being given a notice.
The last hearing was on September 2 and next hearing is scheduled for September 30, 2008.
The senior counsel was directed by the ministry of petroleum to modify the reported statement made by him.
Since then, on the direction of petroleum ministry, Justice Doabia has made a mention before the Bombay High Court Bench on September 11, 2008 to the effect that the statement regarding non conclusion of contract between NTPC and RIL was not a part of brief provided to him by the petroleum ministry.
Last month during the hearing on gas dispute between RIL and RNRL, the government counsel Retd Justice Doabia had stated in the Bombay High Court that the contract between RIL and NTPC had not been concluded.
This led to a major controversy after which Petroleum Ministry sought Doabia's explanation on how he made the statement in the court. Doabia, in his explanation, had stated that his statement was based on a brief by the ministry officials.
However, later it was found that the official briefing Doabia were not government employees and were advisers to oil regulator Directorate General of Hydrocarbons.
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