Anil Ambani

Lucknow, Nov. 12: Samajwadi Party general secretary and Rajya Sabha member Amar Singh today threatened to stall Parliament’s winter session, starting November 22, to protest the delay in the Centre’s clearance to the gas deal for Anil Ambani’s Dadri power project.

“We will not allow proceedings in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha to continue till the Centre approves the deal for the power project,” said Singh, who is also the chairman of the Uttar Pradesh Development Council. He was speaking at an event where three power-purchase pacts were signed.

In lobbing the threat, Singh had the permission of chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav who warned that Uttar Pradesh would not brook “any further step-motherly treatment” by the Centre.

“The Centre is throwing a spanner in the state’s development. It is also provoking some so-called farmer leaders to raise their voice against the project,” Mulayam alleged.

Singh said he couldn’t understand why the Centre was sitting on the approval. “If the government is looking for a price hike on the gas, it is welcome. But why isn’t petroleum minister Murli Deora clearing the file?” he asked.

Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries (RIL) is to supply 20 million metric standard cubic metres of gas per day to Anil’s Reliance Natural Resources (RNRL) under a court-approved demerger deal reached between the brothers after the Dhirubhai Ambani empire was carved up.

Last week, RNRL moved Bombay High Court against RIL for failing to execute the deal. In July, the Centre had rejected the $2.34-per-MMBtu (million metric British thermal units) price at which RIL was supposed to sell the gas to RNRL. The government feared losses of over Rs 20,000 crore in royalties over 15 years.

Anil said: “Certain obstacles were delaying the project but these would be sorted out.”