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AI divestment: Still a long way to go

Ashwini Phadnis

NEW DELHI, July 5

WHILE the Government has approved the shareholders agreement for sale of Air India (AI) and hopes to receive the technical and financial bids soon, the disinvestment process is far from being over just yet.

Sources caution that there is still the key question of the buyers and sellers arriving at a price which is acceptable to both the parties.

``AI is not yet a done deal. The important question of coming to a price which is acceptable to both the buyer and seller is yet to be firmed up. Besides, you can never be sure of what the next hurdle in the run up to the disinvestment process may be,'' sources said.

The Disinvestment Minister, Mr Arun Shourie, has also indicated that the Government will go ahead with the bidding process even if there is one bidder in the race but only if the bid price is more than the reserve price set by the Government.

The reported differences among the various National Democratic Alliance (NDA) allies over the manner in which the process should continue is also causing concern.

``While it is the job of the opposition to oppose, the fact that some NDA allies are also said to be against the move is disturbing. We just do not know where we will end,'' sources said.

There are also apprehensions in some quarters that if the AI disinvestment goes through in its present form, then it could sound the death knell for Indian Airlines (IA).

``Unless there are specific clauses in the shareholders agreement which prohibit AI from picking up domestic passengers while connecting to an international destination, the AI disinvestment process could also affect the fortunes of IA,'' sources said.

However, they refused to specify the time-frame for the sale to go through expect for stating that nothing should be rushed into. ``The exercise has to be completed in a fool proof manner so that there is no scope for any one of the two parties to compla in later,'' sources said.