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Maran gives Hutch-Vodafone deal a clean chit

Ahead of Foreign Investment Promotion Board’s (FIPB) meeting on the Hutch-Vodafone deal, Communication and IT Minister Dayanidhi Maran today gave a clean chit to the transaction saying there was nothing wrong with it going by the licensing conditions.

“As far as my ministry is concerned, we have said there is no breach of licensing conditions either by Hutchison or Vodafone,” Maran told PTI.

He, however, said FIPB was the right authority to do the due diligence and go into details of the shareholding pattern.

Meanwhile, the two minority Hutch-Essar shareholders, Asim Ghosh and Analjit Singh, besides officials of Hutchison and Vodafone will meet Finance Secretary Ashok Jha tomorrow to clarify queries that the Finance Ministry may have.

Max Group Chairman Analjit Singh also met FIPB officials and stated that there was no agreement between him and Hutchison (now Vodafone) to sell his shares on a future date at a face value of Rs 10.

As and when, if a sale takes place, it will be on market price, Singh said, adding, “but I have decided to stay with the company and I am the sole owner of my stake.”

Earlier in the day, the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) indicated that the $12 billion Hutch-Vodafone deal is FDI compliant.