RNRL Counsel: New govt policy not binding on all parties

The RIL-RNRL KG D6 gas row intensified further in the Supreme Court with RNRL's counsel and the government counsel engaging in a war of words, reports CNBC-TV18's Nayantara Rai.

RNRL Counsel Ram Jethmalani picked up the ante and told the government counsel Mohan Parasaran that he ran away from the Bombay High Court when Jethmalani wanted to cross-examine all the submissions made by the government. But in the end he said that he has no problem that the government is made a party to the case but only based on the records of the Bombay High Court. He went on to say that if the government is made a party to this case, they must be submitted to discovery, inspection and cross examination.

Then he went on to say that the entire theory of sovereignty which RIL's counsel Harish Salve has referred to so many times had actually been debunked long back and that it's a very well know fact that new government policies are not binding on everyone.

After that the government counsel Mohan Parasaran did get a chance to speak and he started presenting the case for the government saying that tomorrow what if RIL were to withdraw its SLP-what happens to the face of the government, after all this gas belongs to the government and two brothers are merely seeking to divide the gas.

He said in May 2006, RIL had submitted an application to the government of whether it could supply gas to RNRL at USD 2.34 /mmbtu which the government had rejected since this price is not arrived at an arms length basis.

Then the Supreme Court Bench asked that did any party actually challenge the suggestion to which Mohan Parasaran said no and that is indeed not the case. Then he went on to say that RIL, RNRL cannot settle this amongst themselves, and if they do then any agreement that is reached by RIL, RNRL have to satisfy the statutory terms of the production sharing contact.