Upping the ante, Suhel Seth on Friday said he was willing to raise his stake in Media Content and Communication Services (MCCS), the company that has sought the government's permission to uplink Star News, from 30 per cent to 51 per cent.
"I am neither a parking lot nor a dummy investor," he told Business Standard.
This could queer the pitch for others who are in the race for a 51 per cent shareholding in Star News, anticipating today's decision.
While the frontrunner for the stake is the Kolkata-based ABP Ltd, the others in the running include the Hindujas and Hindustan Times.
Seth had started with a 5 per cent stake in MCCS, which he raised to 30 per cent by picking up the 25 per cent stake held by Kumarmangalam Birla. He added that he would kick off negotiations to further raise his stake in MCCS in a couple of days.
The other shareholders of MCCS are Merrill Lynch Vice-Chairman Hemendra Kothari with a 25 per cent stake, Hindustan Times editor Vir Sanghvi (5 per cent), Raian Karanjiwala (4 per cent), Maya Alagh (5 per cent) and Jeetendra Kapoor (5 per cent).
