Announcement after approval by Shah-headed Group of Mins
Tata Sons has reportedly emerged the highest bidder for the debt-laden Air India but the formal announcement would be made after the approval of the Group of Ministers headed by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Hours after reports suggesting that Tata Sons has won the bid for Air India started doing the rounds, the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) said the bids are being evaluated and the decision is yet to be taken.
Earlier, Tuhan Kanta Pandey, Secretary of the DIPAM, clarified that media reports indicating approval of financial bids by the Government of India in the Air India disinvestment case are incorrect. “Media will be informed of the Government decision as and when it is taken,” tweeted the Secretary.
Air India and Tata Sons declined to comment. Tata group had bid against debt-strapped SpiceJet’s promoter Ajay Singh. Singh had bid in his individual capacity.
Sources in the Government said, “Tata Sons has placed the highest bid for Air India but an official announcement on the winning bid will be taken in the next few days only after the approval of a group of ministers headed by Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The other members of the panel called Air India Specific Alternative Mechanism (AISAM) are Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and Civil Aviation Minster Jyotiraditya Scindia.”
