TCIL has 30 days to decide whether it wants to block Bharti's second attempt to acquire stake in Hexacom by exercising its right of first refusal, and the board of the state-owned company would meet shortly to take a view on the issue.
According to TCIL officials, the board could meet sometime next week to take a decision on whether or not to exercise its right of first refusal, and the view of the board would subsequently be forwarded to the department of telecom.
Though the chances of TCIL exercising the right seem remote, as the company has begun the process of offloading its existing 30 per cent stake in Hexacom -- the largest GSM based mobile service provider in Rajasthan under the brandname Oasis -- the board would give its opinion to the government for a final decision.
While the date of the board meeting is yet to be decided, the company intended to give its views to the government in the shortest possible time, as the notice issued by Shyam specifies a 30-day deadline, officials added.
They however, declined to comment on the present view of the company on the right of first refusal saying it was not fair to pre-judge the issue.
Last week, Bharti had inked a Rs 430 crore (Rs 4,300 million) cash-cum-share swap deal with Shyam Telecom to buy its 67.5 per cent stake in Hexacom subject to TCIL's right of refusal and other stipulated conditions.
The consideration of Rs 430 crore includes the premium for majority shareholding and majority on the board of directors.
The deal is proposed to be funded by way of issue of equity shares of Bharti Tele-ventures for Rs 75 crore (Rs 750 million), issue of optimally convertible redeemable debentures for Rs 300 crore (Rs 3,000 million) and the balance in cash.
According to Bharti, this acquisition would give it a presence in Rajasthan, thereby expanding its footprint to all over India.
Bharti also intends to consolidate its stake in Hexacom as and when an appropriate opportunity comes its way.
The move comes after Bharti made a pitch to acquire Canadian company TIW's about 27 per cent stake in Hexacom but lost out to Shyam which exercised its right of first refusal to acquire the Canadian major's equity.
