Tarun Das offers to quit as Haldia Petrochem chief

Tarun Das, former director general of the Confederation of Indian Industry, has offered to resign as the chairman of Haldia Petrochemicals Ltd (HPL).

West Bengal commerce and industry secretary Dipankar Mukhopadhyay confirmed the development. He said he had received a letter from Das in which he expressed his willingness to step down as HPL chairman.

“The papers are with industry minister Partha Chatterjee and he will discuss the matter with chief minister Mamata Banerjee and will take a call on it soon,” Mukhopadhyay said.

The development was also confirmed by The Chatterjee Group (TCG) officials, one of the promoters of HPL.

 

Das took charge when Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee became the chief minister of West Bengal in 2000. His stint also saw the intense legal battle between Purnendu Chatterjee-led TCG and the West Bengal government, another promoter of HPL, over the control of the East India’s biggest petrochemical company.“Since Das was a government nominee, with the change, he also wants to step down and had submitted the letter on the day of swearing in by the Trinamool Congress-led government,” Mukhopadhyay said.