Only SC to take up divestment cases

NEW DELHI: The centre’s chances of securing a review of the Supreme Court judgement staying disinvestment of HPCL and BPCL brightened today with the apex court deciding to take a holistic view of the government’s disinvestment policy. At a hearing today on a petition filed by the Jessop & Co Officers Association, a three-bench Supreme Court Bench of Chief justice V N Khare, Justice S B Sinha and Justice A R Lakshmanan (the last mentioned was not present today) decided to transfer all cases challenging privatisation of PSUs before the various high courts to itself. It has also ordered a stay on proceedings on matters of disinvestment before any court on a petition filed by the Union government.
Although the bench made no specific observation or comment on reconsidering the September 16 pronouncement of Justices S Rajendra Babu and G P Mathur staying divestment of HPCL/ BPCL, many legal observers reckon that the stay on the oil PSUs divestment would figure in the arguments. Justice Sinha said: “We are primarily concerned whether disinvestment requires parliamentary approval and whether it is legally permitted.�