SC begins final hearing in pleas to scrap RIL’s KG contract

Amid claims and counter-claims, the Supreme Court commenced the final hearing in the public interest litigations seeking scraping of Reliance Industries Ltd’s contract for gas production from the Krishna-Godavari basin and re-auctioning of the company’s blocks. While RIL told the court that gas output from KG basin has fallen to 8 mscmd against expected 80 mscmd due to “technical reason”, the petitioners alleged collusion between the government and the company, saying RIL “is holding country’s energy security to ransom”. The petitioners–Communist Party of India leader Gurudas Dasgupta and Advocate Prashant Bhushan-led non-government organisation–have also sought a stay on hike in the KG basin gas price. Senior advocate Colin Gonzalves appearing for Dasgupta said RIL was “gold plating” its cost so as to recover maximum money from the government. Gonzalves said natural resources belong to the people of the country and the government and RIL must disclose exactly where and how much gas and oil was found. “One day Reliance (RIL) issues press release saying they found huge reserves. Another day Reliance says there is no gas. Then a minister will give statement that the country is floating on oil reserves,” Gonzalves said. “There is an alarming state of affairs where Reliance (RIL) is holding energy security of even future generations to ransom,” he added. Gonzalves said the hike in gas price takes effect from Apr 1, just three months before the government completes its tenure and such important decision should be left to the next government only.  Interjecting at several occasions, RIL’s senior counsel Harish Salve denied the allegations and said the fall in production from KG basis was due to technical reasons. Source :  http://freepressjournal.in/sc-begins-final-hearing-in-pleas-to-scrap-rils-kg-contract/