RIL welcomes Anil Ambani statement, hopes it is "real change of heart"

File photo of Mukesh Ambani.

Oil and gas major Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), led by Mukesh Ambani, tonight welcomed as a "positive indicator" a statement issued earlier in the day by his estranged younger brother Anil Ambani reaching out to him so that a solution could be found to all outstanding issues between them.

"RIL welcomes this positive indicator and will not be found wanting in responding to them constructively," the company said in a statement, while stating that the conduct of the Reliance ADA Group in recent years made it difficult for RIL to believe that Mr Anil Ambani had had a real change of heart.

It said that Mr Anil Ambani had indulged in a malicious campaign against RIL and its Chairman for the last many years.

"The campaign reached its nadir in recent months through a vicious series of advertisements, unprecedented in India’s corporate history. RIL while denying all the false accusations has responded to this campaign with dignified silence," it said.

The statement said that what was both saddening and perplexing was that Mr Anil Ambani had yet again sought to communicate to RIL and its Chairman through the public domain, whereas he could have easily contacted his elder brother directly.

File photo of Anil Ambani.

"In order to demonstrate that his intentions behind the latest overture are bonafide, we urge Mr Anil Ambani to put his sentiments into actions. We can now only hope, that the deeds of Mr Anil Ambani and his associates are reflective of the emotions expressed in the statement. In the last 48 hours itself, Mr Anil Ambani and R-ADAG have made allegations against the Group and its directors which are not only untrue but increasingly hurtful. Hopefully this way of engagement shall also change," the RIL statement said.

It said that, on its part, RIL and its Chairman Mukesh Ambani had always wished Mr Anil Ambani and would continue to do so.

The statement said that RIL had noted the comments made by Mr Anil Ambani today with the "care and concern they deserve."

"RIL welcomes this statement, and hopes that it is a positive change in the negative, calumnious and malafide campaign launched by R-ADAG against RIL. RIL believes that there is no contentious issue in the world that cannot be resolved satisfactorily through mutual dialogue, provided the proposal for reconciliation is anchored in good and honest intentions," it said.

"RIL has always maintained that the dispute under litigation is not merely a family matter, as Mr Anil Ambani’s statement once again tries to make out to be. Vital national interests in terms of securing government’s revenue from the natural gas the government owns and Government of India's sound policy framework for promoting India’s energy security, are at stake. The interests of RIL’s shareholders are also at stake. RIL does not belong to a family. It belongs to shareholders, to those associates who have made this journey possible and most importantly to the nation, India," it said.

It said issues which arose out of a decision of the Bombay High Court transcended any private differences between two brothers or two corporate entities and could now only be decisively resolved by a decision of the Highest Court.

"RIL sincerely hopes that any overture for rapprochement to end acrimony are sincere and in no way related to the ongoing hearing of the case in the Honorable Supreme Court," it said.

Mr Anil Ambani, in his statement, had said that he sincerely believed that his brother and he could, even at this late stage, sort out all their disagreements, in a constructive, cordial and conciliatory manner, if they both committed to getting this done.

"The issues are only a handful, and the facts are well known. My judgement says that they can all be resolved in a matter of weeks, and will not require several months of discussions," he said.

Mr Anil Ambani issued the statement after making a pilgrimage today to the holy shrines of Kedarnath and Badrinath in Uttarakhand "in the hope of seeking divine inspiration and blessings, in trying to heal the wounds, and in making a renewed effort to resolve, reconcile and reciprocate."

"Accordingly, with the blessings of my mother, and invoking the power of Lord Shiva from this most sacred of holy places, I am once again reaching out to Mukeshbhai - and hope and pray that my feelings will be reciprocated, and we will arrive at a solution to all outstanding issues, with a generous heart, a willing mind, and an accommodating spirit," he said.

According to him, there could no better gift to their mother, Ms Kokilaben Ambani, in her 75th year and to the legacy of their father, the late Dhirubhai Ambani, the founder of the Reliance Group.

Mr Anil Ambani said that the June 2005 "restructuring" of the Reliance Empire, with the approval of their mother, was in line with the vision and value creation philosophy of Mr Dhirubhai Ambani.

He said he had then sincerely believed that he and his brother had resolved all issues and come to an amicable settlement that would create two of India's most dynamic business groups, bring peace and harmony to their family and generate substantial wealth for millions of shareholders of the Reliance family.

"Over the past 4 years, some parts of that promise have been realized. Unfortunately, the joy of that achievement has been tempered by the sorrow, pain and anguish of continuing disagreement and acrimony with my elder brother, Mukeshbhai.

"Over these past 4 years, I have persevered with utmost sincerity, humility and good faith, and left no stone unturned to try and resolve our differences.

"To my lasting regret, despite all my well-meaning efforts, I have failed - pushing us even to the extreme step of recourse to litigation to protect the interests of over 11 million shareholders of our Group," he said.

According to him, over the past few weeks, many elder statesmen, trusted family members and long-standing friends of their father, who have always had the best interests of the nation and the Ambani family at heart, have talked of the need to break the current impasse, and to find a solution that puts an end to the bitterness and rancor; and paves the way for substantial future growth and value creation for the country and millions of our shareholders.

"I agree with each one of them. This has been a time of deep sadness and pain for me personally. Yet, throughout this very trying period, I have maintained the greatest of love, affection and respect for Mukeshbhai - as I have done since my birth," he added.

The two Ambani brothers have been involved in an unseemly battle over the terms of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that they signed when the Reliance Group was split between them in 2005 after a prolonged public spat over ownership issues following Dhirubhai Ambani's death in July, 2002.

In particular, they have been engaged in a battle over the pricing of gas from RIL's Krishna Godavari (KG) D6 block.

Mr Anil Ambani, in recent months, had launched a no-holds-barred attack on RIL and the Union Petroleum Ministry, accusing his elder brother's company of corporate greed and Petroleum Minister Murli Deora of being biased in favour of RIL.

Mr Anil Ambani's company, Reliance Natural Resources Ltd (RNRL) had accused RIL of "gold plating" its investments in the KG basin, a charge that has been vehemently denied by RIL and the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons.

More recently, the two groups were engaged in a dispute about the marketing margin levied by RIL on the gas from KG D6 sold by it to Reliance Infrastructure, another RDAG company.

NNN