Accusations on Reliance Industries
Mukesh Ambani’s company Reliance Industries is standing in the dock. Because, according to the report of Live Law, Reliance Industries is accused of stealing gas worth about $ 1.55 billion from the wells of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC). This matter will be heard on November 18. According to the report, the Bombay High Court had issued a notice to the CBI and the Central Government on November 4, demanding an investigation against Reliance Industries and its Chairman Mukesh Ambani.
What is the matter?
The petition states that between 2004 and 2013-14, Reliance Industries committed large-scale fraud by doing sideways drilling in blocks adjacent to ONGC in the Krishna Godavari basin. Due to this, gas was stolen from ONGC fields and went to Reliance blocks. The petition demands the court to order the CBI and the government to register a case against Reliance and its directors for the crimes of theft, embezzlement and breach of trust. The petitioner says that this conspiracy was hatched in Mumbai, hence CBI has the right to investigate.
Demand to confiscate documents
The report said that the petitioner has asked the court to seize all the documents related to the case. These include contracts, investigation reports, and A.P. This includes the Shah Committee report, which stated that the value of the stolen gas was more than $1.55 billion, with an additional interest of $174.9 million.
This matter is not new. ONGC had suspected gas theft in 2013 itself, and had informed the government about it. However, Reliance said that the gas is of migratory nature, that is, it flows naturally from one area to another, hence it was not wrong to extract it.
Court and investigation status
Earlier this year, Reliance Industries had won the arbitration in this dispute. But the Delhi High Court, in an order dated February 14, struck down the decision, saying it was against public policy and the interests of India. It is also worth noting that the report of American consulting company DeGolyer & McNaughton (D&M) had confirmed that Reliance had extracted gas from ONGC’s fields without permission.