Over six months have lapsed since Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) — India’s largest petrochemical and oil refining company in the private sector — was rocked by an ownership dispute between the Ambani brothers, Mukesh and Anil. This is arguably the most closely watched dispute in India’s corporate history. For two basic reasons. One, it involves the interests of over three million shareholders, besides an army of workers and innumerable consumers. Two, India’s energy security is closely linked with the fortunes of RIL for the simple reason that a country’s refining capacity has come to be a crucial measure of its growth potential and future trajectory.Prospects of an imminent Reliance settlement have been figuring in the news space over the last few weeks and the man at the centre of the story — ICICI Bank Chairman K.V. Kamath — appears optimistic about just such an outcome. In his Walk the Talk interview he explains the basis for his optimism: both brothers, he points out, are two “very mature”, “intelligent” and “capable” individuals who will ensure that a settlement does not come at a very high cost to the company and its shareholders. It is an assessment from the inside that many in this country would wish to endorse. The next few months will reveal whether Kamath’s observations stand the test of accuracy or whether it was merely a case of wishful thinking.We hope, of course, that Kamath proves to have been prescient. Anil and Mukesh Ambani will need to display their maturity, intelligence and capability in ample measure if this sorry chapter in their lives, and in that of their company, is to be put behind them. The focus, as articulated in the interview, must be on shareholders — their interests should always come first. It is only after this basic principle is acknowledged and acted upon, can a gargantuan organisation like RIL achieve its objective of both creating value and sustaining it.
