Vijayawada:
The high court on Tuesday directed petitioners to
file counter affidavits in the amendment petition filed by Rashtriya
Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL) seeking to modify the earlier status quo order on
sale of assets of the company. The HC earlier directed the Union govt
and RINL to maintain status quo with respect to sale of assets. RINL
filed the petition arguing that it planned to dispose of some of the assets
which it acquired on its own for raising funds, but the process came to a halt
with the status quo order of the high court.
The original proposal was to divest 100% stake of Union govt in RINL.
However,
the move was challenged before the high court by former IPS officer VV
Lakshminarayana, Praja Shanti Party founder KA Paul, and one Suvarana Raju.
They objected to the privatisation of RINL, popularly known as Visakhapatnam
Steel Plant (VSP), without considering alternatives. The petitioners earlier
filed interlocutory applications seeking directions to the Union govt to
maintain status quo as it was planning to dispose of lands acquired for the
steel plant. However, the additional solicitor general told the high court that
the Union govt only intended to sell its stake in the company. The high court
issued a status quo order with respect to sale of lands acquired from people.
Paul, who is arguing by appearing in person before the high court, complained
that police are obstructing him and not allowing him to enter the court. He
urged the high court to examine the CCTV footage to back his claims. The bench
told him to lodge a complaint with the high court registry if he has any issue
with the police, while adding that action will be taken against him if no
mistake is found from the side of the police.
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