Amid uncertainty over his extension as oil sector regulator following allegations that he favoured Reliance Industries, V K Sibal has sought voluntary retirement from his parent company Oil India.
Sibal was appointed Director General in the upstream regulatory body in 2004 for a five-year period and was on deputation from OIL. Sibal could not be reached for comments.
His five-year term as Director General of Hydrocarbons comes to end on October 31 and is eligible for extension till his superannuation age of 60 years in 2011.
A proposal for extension from the Oil Ministry is pending clearance from CVC and CBI, which is probing allegations that he favoured Mukesh Ambani-led RIL in lieu of personal benefits.
The allegations are that Sibal received favours from Reliance Industries for approving an increase in costs for developing the company operated KG-D6 gas fields to $8.8 billion from $2.47 billion.
CVC, whose approval is needed for extension of tenure, had asked CBI to discreetly verify the charges against Sibal and both the reports are awaited.
