New Delhi: In an apparent bid to shield the previous NDA government in Laxmi Vilas Palace Hotel disinvestment probe, CBI on Friday said the inter-ministerial Group headed by Pradeep Baijal had allegedly "misled" the Cabinet Committee on Disinvestment which included the then Minister Arun Shourie.
In a statement defending the agency following criticism from BJP leaders on the matter, CBI spokesperson Kanchan Prasad today said, "Pradeep Baijal headed the IMG that was nodal agency for implementation (of decision of disinvestment) and Cabinet Committee on Disinvestment was miguided by the IMG about the implementation process."
The Cabinet Committee was chaired by then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and comprised of senior Cabinet Ministers along with Shourie who was the Minister of Disinvestment.
One of the functions of the Committee was to decide the final pricing of the transaction and the strategic partner in case of strategic sales.
The Inter-Ministerial Group chaired by Baijal, who was Secretary, Disinvestment, comprised of officers of Finance Ministry, Department of Public Enterprises, Administrative Ministry and the CMD of concerned Public Sector Enterprise.
The group had to implement disinvestment decisions, including appointment of advisors, pricing of shares, and other terms and conditions of disinvestment.
"The valuer appointed by ITDC, which owned the heritage hotel, was changed by IMG," Prasad said.
CBI has alleged that five-star Laxmi Vilas Palace ITDC hotel spread on 29 acres of prime property in Udaipur worth Rs 151 crore was sold to Bharat Hotels at an undervalued price of Rs 7.5 crore in 2002.
