No plan to sell Tata Steel stake: B K Birla

Dismissing speculation that they have decided to sell off their stake in Tata Steel, the Birlas today said there was no such plan "at the moment."

Birla family patriarch Basant Kumar Birla said here that there was no plan to sell off the group's holding in Tata Steel now.

"Entirely wrong," was the curt response by Birla when his attention was drawn to media reports that stated the Birla group had decided to sell their stake in Tata Steel in the wake of the stand-off with the Tatas over holding in Idea Cellular.

Eighty-six-year-old Birla, who heads the B K Birla group of companies, also said the Birlas' holding in Tata Steel is with Pilani Investments - one of the oldest Birla companies that has holdings in most of the Birla group companies and headed by B K Birla.

Birla, who, along with his grandson Kumar Mangalam Birla, only last year consolidated his holding in Pilani was categorical that there was no plan to exit from Tata Steel. "At the moment, we do not have any intention of selling our stake in Tata Steel," he said.