For whom the bells toll

Y C Deveshwar has finally got his company the legal victory it8217;s fought for. It matters a lot that it has come after 17 long years. It ...

Y C Deveshwar has finally got his company the legal victory it8217;s fought for. It matters a lot that it has come after 17 long years. It was Chairman Sapru who was accused of scheming up with retailers to sell cigarettes at a price higher than that printed on the packs, during 1983 to 1987. But the Rs 803 crore win over the Finance Ministry means good news for the tycoon on the hot seat right now. The victory as expected boosted ITC8217;s stock, which soared to almost a six-month high of Rs 1,114.90 on the BSE. But the victory wasn8217;t without its share of shame, suspicion and drama. The Supreme Court took public exception to an unsigned copy of the judgement being taken out of the court by the ITC counsel without permission. While it did seem initially that the apology from the counsel would settle things down, there are murmurs in New Delhi that there8217;s more afoot. Was one of the markets favourite big brokers also privy to this information? Was he the one that the Supreme Court judge was alluding to or was there a hint of collusion with the company8217;s own honchos? Nobody is sure yet.

Deveshwar most definitely is relieved, considering he would have had to give up a lot of money if he had lost the case. But now instead with money flowing in, his cash hoard should come in real handy.

Captain Gopinath flying solo

Air Deccan8217;s tycoon Captain G.R. Gopinath has one natural advantage over competitors who have very nominal earnings from e-bookings 8212; his airline reservations are all made through the Internet. This segment contributes heftily to his high sales of Rs 1.3 crore per day! For Air Deccan, an airlines that started operation only a while ago, this is pretty good going.

But the tycoon however got into a little problem when Air Deccan did not fly over some 8216;8216;non profitable8217;8217; routes on the timetable expected recently. This upset the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, who issued a show cause notice against the airlines. The gridlock was cleared only when the ever helpful Union Minister for Civil Aviation Praful Patel intervened.

The tycoon justified his move, or shall we say non-move by saying that he would have done so, except for the lack of parking space at the aerodrome. Guess the tycoon will have to remember that flying high doesn8217;t mean that you forget the ground rules!

Metal gets a new spelling

Brothers P K Mittal and V K Mittal are certainly turning into a rather adventurous lot. They have lately been focusing on strengthening their overseas political contacts. Perhaps that is how they have managed to get a majority stake in Kremikovtzi AD 8212; a plant in Bulgaria.

Once the acquisition of the 2.3 million tonne per annum steel plant comes through, the tycoons8217; Global Infrastructure Holdings Lt GIHL will see a rise in its steel production capacity to 12.3 million tonnes. Charged up with their new turn of luck in Bulgaria, this Mittal duo are next headed for Nigeria. They have just won over the faith of the Nigerian government and a 10 year contract to handle their Ajaokuta steel plant. GIH already has a presence in Philippines, Libya, and Bosnia ,and now with Bulgaria and Nigeria on its side, the brothers will head for East Europe.

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Are the brothers planning to expand their own steel grip? It definitely seems so. And we8217;re not even including estranged brother L N Mittal8217;s unending ambition. Will Mittal soon be the fashionable new spelling for Metal?

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