June 29, 2007	Friday	Jamadi-us-Sani 13, 1428

ISLAMABAD, June 28: The Supreme Court on Thursday issued notice to seven bidders participating in the privatisation of the Pakistan State Oil (PSO) on a challenge moved by the Attock Group against its disqualification from the bidding process.

A two-member bench comprising Justice Javed Iqbal and Justice Falak Sher adjourned further hearing till July 12 with an observation that the privatisation process should always be in the interest of the poor nation.

At the last hearing, the Supreme Court had directed the petitioner to implead all the bidders participating in the privatisation of the PSO, about to happen any time, as parties to the case.

Advocate Ali Sibtain Fazli represented the Attock Group - a consortium of the National Refinery, Attock Petroleum, Pakistan Oilfields and Attock Oil Company.

Advocate Wasim Sajjad, appearing on behalf of the Privatisation Commission opposed the petition and contended that the group had no right to challenge the bidding of the PSO after they had failed to qualify for the bidding process.

He said the PSO had been put on sale under the Privatisation Commission Ordinance 2000 for the third time after due deliberations.

The government intends to sale 51 per cent of shareholdings of the PSO to the ultimate successful bidder through privatisation.

The petition seeks to challenge the rejection by the Sindh High Court with a pleading that if the consortium was prevented from the bidding process, as allegedly being planned by the PC, the national exchequer would be poorer for not fetching reasonable proceeds.

Since the consortium was not officially communicated by the PC about its exclusion from the bidding process, the petition alleged, there was reasonable apprehensions that there was a mala fide manoeuvre to prevent it from taking part in the privatisation of the state assets.

The petition pleaded that the disqualification and exclusion of the consortium from the bidding was entirely violative of the principles of natural justice.

The consortium had also filed an Expression of Interest (EoI) for the privatisation of the PSO, followed by the filing of a statement of qualification (SOQ).