ET TU RATAN?
Ratan Tata has been a votary of free enterprise and is perceived to have conducted his business in a fair and transparent manner befitting the name of Jamshedji Tata abiding by the laws of the land. Ratan disclosed recently in a business summit at Dehradun that he was asked to shell out Rs.15 crores to a Minister to get licence for his joint venture airlines with Singapore airlines. He did not disclose the name provoking the minister at that point of time, Mr. C.M.Ibrahim the man friday for Devegowda to challenge him to come out with the name because he was the minister when he was approached by Tatas and he had explained the rationale for rejection of the permission to have a joint venture. Even when Tata advocated to relieve Dow chemicals of criminal liability for cleaning the chemicals in the defunct UCCIL plant at Bhopal which he offered to cleanse with funds from like minded Indian businessmen, no one suspected his bonafides although I felt he offered to be a palanquin bearer for a Transnational corporation- not for altruistic motives. Tata has grown the Tata enterprise to a global company. He had his questionable decisions of asking all Tata companies to shell out royalty to holding Company Tata and sons to increase its stake through open market operations. Even when Pramod Mahajan gave VSNL on a platter to TTSL not many eye brows were raised for such was the impeccable image of integrity the group carried. Well all these before Radia gate. Ratan may feel offended by the startling revelations these tapes made for it has removed the integrity mask that he wore all this time. It should be said to Ratan's credit that of all telecom operators, he was the one who said spectrum should not be made available free and charged atleast a nominal value of Rs.1000 crores. But that he employed a corporate lobbyist who was handling briefs for his competitors as well to influence policy decisions in ministry making was shocking. Tata claimed in a channel that no one has the right to publish private conversation he had with one of his business associates, but he was not talking about her personal issues, dress code or whatever. He was talking about a particular ministry to be headed by a particular man for obvious reasons. He himself could have spoken to the Prime minister for such was his clout. But he chose to air this to a corporate lobbyist is a mystery. He has a lot many to answer for . Another disturbing news for him is that Tatas have lent advances to Unitec, a realty company who was a successful bidder for spectrum. his business rivals Ambanis could have been the source of the leak to his embarassment but unlike Ambani siblings, Ratan you had a reputation of being straight and honest. Ratan will have to come clean on all these disclosure to redeem what it seems a damaged reputation of not only himself but the whole of Tata empire.
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