Disinvestment Ministry gives details to AG for opinion on HPCL

NEW DELHI: Disinvestment Minister Arun Shourie said that his ministry had furnished all the facts to Attorney General for getting his opinion on legal aspects of privatisation of oil PSU -- HPCL --, which was acquired and nationalised through an Act of Parliament.
"We have given him (AG) all the facts," Shourie told reporters adding that now it was for him to give the opinion.
On privatisation of Engineers India (EIL), he said it was a consultancy firm in oil sector and it could not progress as nothing was moving in the petroleum sector (divestment of oil PSUs, HPCL and BPCL).
He, however, clarified the divestment of EIL was not being deferred.
Shourie said there were no hindrance in divestment of government equity in Maruti Udyog contrary to news reports.
Asked about the progress on divestment in aluminium PSU NALCO, where due deligence process was stopped a few months ago following a hostile reception accorded to a team of officials which had gone to Orissa for due-diligence, Shourie said "it is where it was."
Asked if the disinvestment target of Rs 12,000 crore would be achieved, Shourie said it was difficult for the target to be realised if there continued to be hindrances or stoppages.