indianexpress.com :: The farce ends, CBI closes Centaur case, says nothing wrong

The farce ends, CBI closes Centaur case, says nothing wrong

Express news service

Posted online: Wednesday, February 27, 2008 at 0034 hrs IST

NEW DELHI, FEBRUARY 26
Nearly three years after a report by the Comptroller Auditor General of India questioned the process adopted for the sale of the two Centaur Hotels in Mumbai by the NDA government, prompting the UPA to ask the Central Bureau of Investigation to probe the sale, the CBI has concluded its inquiries and found nothing wrong in the privatization process.

A senior CBI official confirmed to The Indian Express tonight: “The CBI was asked to look into the points raised by the CAG report. But our investigation hasn’t revealed any irregularities and preliminary enquiries have been shut down.”

The sale of the loss-making hotels that were bleeding the exchequer in early 2002, were questioned by NDA member Shiv Sena in Parliament as a case of “undervalued” sale but matters came to a head when the UPA came to power in 2004 with the support of the Left who demanded that the UPA not only cancel the sale but also investigate NDA Disinvestment Minister Arun Shourie’s “personal role” in it.

Finance Minister P Chidambaram had then stressed that the government will wait for the CAG’s report on the sale before considering any further move.

In May 2005, the CAG report was tabled in Parliament. It argued, among other things; that “there was only one bidder and so the deal couldn’t benefit from competition”; that “there was no written record of why most of the 20 original interested parties withdrew” and that the bidder’s financial strength was not “adequately scrutinized.”

Shourie had strongly rebutted the charges and had offered to face “any inquiry” that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh or Chidambaram deemed fit.

The Airport Centaur Hotel had been sold to Batra Hospitality for Rs 83 crore, who resold it to Sahara Hospitality for Rs 113 crore later. The Juhu Centaur Hotel had been sold to Ajit Kerkar’s Tulip Hospitality Services for Rs 153 crore. The CBI had initiated two separate preliminary enquiries (PEs) for the two hotels’ sales. In both cases, CBI has found that there were no irregularities. In Juhu Centaur’s case, the CBI has dismissed the CAG allegation echoed loudly by the Left parties that the Disinvestment Ministry facilitated the financing of the transaction by public sector banks and LIC.

Reacting to the news of the CBI’s closure of the two PEs in the Centaur case that will be communicated to the relevant court soon, CPI’s D Raja said, “We do not know on what grounds and facts the CBI has given the clean chit. We have to see them.”

	Print Story
The farce ends, CBI closes Centaur case, says nothing wrong Express news service Posted online: Wednesday, February 27, 2008 at 0034 hrs IST NEW DELHI, FEBRUARY 26 Nearly three years after a report by the Comptroller Auditor General of India questioned the process adopted for the sale of the two Centaur Hotels in Mumbai by the NDA government, prompting the UPA to ask the Central Bureau of Investigation to probe the sale, the CBI has concluded its inquiries and found nothing wrong in the privatization process. A senior CBI official confirmed to The Indian Express tonight: “The CBI was asked to look into the points raised by the CAG report. But our investigation hasn’t revealed any irregularities and preliminary enquiries have been shut down.” The sale of the loss-making hotels that were bleeding the exchequer in early 2002, were questioned by NDA member Shiv Sena in Parliament as a case of “undervalued” sale but matters came to a head when the UPA came to power in 2004 with the support of the Left who demanded that the UPA not only cancel the sale but also investigate NDA Disinvestment Minister Arun Shourie’s “personal role” in it. Finance Minister P Chidambaram had then stressed that the government will wait for the CAG’s report on the sale before considering any further move. In May 2005, the CAG report was tabled in Parliament. It argued, among other things; that “there was only one bidder and so the deal couldn’t benefit from competition”; that “there was no written record of why most of the 20 original interested parties withdrew” and that the bidder’s financial strength was not “adequately scrutinized.” Shourie had strongly rebutted the charges and had offered to face “any inquiry” that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh or Chidambaram deemed fit. The Airport Centaur Hotel had been sold to Batra Hospitality for Rs 83 crore, who resold it to Sahara Hospitality for Rs 113 crore later. The Juhu Centaur Hotel had been sold to Ajit Kerkar’s Tulip Hospitality Services for Rs 153 crore. The CBI had initiated two separate preliminary enquiries (PEs) for the two hotels’ sales. In both cases, CBI has found that there were no irregularities. In Juhu Centaur’s case, the CBI has dismissed the CAG allegation echoed loudly by the Left parties that the Disinvestment Ministry facilitated the financing of the transaction by public sector banks and LIC. Reacting to the news of the CBI’s closure of the two PEs in the Centaur case that will be communicated to the relevant court soon, CPI’s D Raja said, “We do not know on what grounds and facts the CBI has given the clean chit. We have to see them.”