Amar: Talk over tea

Lucknow, Nov. 29: Samajwadi Party general secretary Amar Singh today hoped that the feud between the Ambani brothers would have no effect on the proposed Reliance power project in Uttar Pradesh.

Singh, the chairman of the Uttar Pradesh Development Council, met governor T.V. Rajeswar Rao late this evening on the eve of his party?s move to table in the Assembly tomorrow the Maulana Jauhar Urdu University Bill. The governor has opposed the bill, triggering a cold war with the state government.

?The meeting was a courtesy call. After Diwali I had talks with the governor on a number of subjects except the bill,? Singh said, scotching speculation that he was trying to play mediator between the ruling Samajwadi Party and Rao.

Singh, who spent about two hours today at Rao?s residence, said: ?I enjoyed the tea with the governor.?

The Samajwadi leader played down the impact of the Ambani power tussle on the proposed power project in Ghaziabad. ?Anil Ambani is still the chairman of Reliance Energy and he is committed to the power project in the state. I don?t see any reason why this project would come under a cloud.?

In June, Singh and Anil had announced that Uttar Pradesh would soon be the energy capital of India with Reliance Energy planning to invest Rs 10,000 crore for the development of a 3,500-mw gas-based power project at Dadri near Ghaziabad.

Land for the project had been allotted and a memorandum of understanding had been signed, the Samajwadi leader said.

However, the rift between the Ambani brothers has put a question mark on the project.

The Samajwadi leader refuted suggestions that the project and the subsequent Rajya Sabha membership of Anil from Uttar Pradesh were also partly responsible for the rift. ?This is a vicious campaign by the Opposition and a part of the media,? he said.

Singh hoped the Urdu university bill would be passed. ?Being in a constitutional post, the governor is supposed to sign the bill. If the bill is not singed and the Urdu university is not set up, this will become a big political issue for us. We will go to the people,? he said.