The Supreme Court on Monday said it will be difficult to reverse the $8.5 billion
Cairn-Vedanta deal but would examine the allegation that it contravened an agreement that while selling its shares
Cairn India would offer them first to state-owned PSU ONGC.
A bench of justices D K Jain and Madan B Lokur asked the Centre, Cairn India Ltd and other parties to file their couter affidavits within four weeks.
The court had issued a notice to Centre and the companies on April 27 but they failed to file their responses on a PIL seeking a CBI probe into the reasons for ONGC and government in "not asserting" their legal rights on the issue.
The bench said it would be difficut to reverse the deal but it would look into the allegation after a response is filed in the case.
"We will take note of what has happened," the bench said.
The bench was hearing a PIL filed by a Bangalore resident Arun Kumar Agarwal who alleged there was a clause in an agreement between Cairn group and ONGC that in case Cairn Group wanted to sell its shares in Cairn India, it would first offer the same to ONGC.
As per the clause, Cairn could sell its shares to other parties only after ONGC refused to buy the stake and ONGC, thus, had the right of first refusal (ROFR), he said.
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