Spurning a bid by Mukesh Ambani-led RIL to open conciliation talks on Monday, younger sibling Anil's RCOM instead proposed a 'clarificatory' meeting next week as the estranged brothers continued their acrimony over the South African telecom giant MTN.
Following upon its offer to open talks for conciliation of their differences over RCOM's right to amalgamate MTN, an RIL team of financial and legal brass landed up at a five-star hotel in Mumbai on Monday morning. After sipping coffee during a hour-long wait for RCOM counterparts, the officials left.
RCOM officials explained the rebuff by saying, on condition of anonymity, that the company did not see any dispute that required conciliation.
Having made this legal tackle, RCOM thereafter proposed a meeting next week purely for the purpose of clarifications that RIL, which has claimed the first right of refusal on majority stake in RCOM, may seek.
The meeting would not constitute any conciliation or 'dispute resolution' mechanism, RCOM officials said.
In its offer, which follows RIL last week invoking arbitration clause under the non-compete agreement and asking RCOM to start conciliation as part of the process, RCOM proposed to meet 'RIL on July 14 to clarify any doubts'.
Debunking RIL's claim of right of first refusal as 'legally and factually untenable and misconceived', RCOM, whose exclusivity agreement with MTN for talks, is coming to end on Tuesday, said the 'meeting is not part of conciliation or dispute resolution mechanism'.
RCOM sources said that neither there was any dispute nor occasion for reconciliation process and said that communication to RIL makes it clear that the company reserved the rights to take all actions as legally advised.