The government on Tuesday extended the deadline for submission of initial bids for Air India stake sale till May 31 and issued a slew of clarifications on the divestment process, including that individuals other than the airline employees are barred from bidding.

Coming out with a set of clarifications in the form of 160 questions and respective answers, the government also made it clear that it would have the rights of a “minority shareholder” with 24 per cent stake in Air India post disinvestment.

Providing more time, the last date for submission of expressions of interest (EoIs) for Air India disinvestment has been extended to May 31 from the earlier deadline of May 14. The qualified bidders would now be known on June 15, whereas the earlier date was May 29, according to an official communication.

Starting the disinvestment process of the debt-laden national carrier, the preliminary information memorandum for the proposed sale of up to 76 per cent stake in Air India along with management control to private entities was issued on March 28. The divestment would include profit-making Air India Express and joint venture AISATS, an equal joint venture between the national carrier and Singapore-based SATS.
The Air India employees in Mumbai staged a massive protest against the government’s disin-vestment plan. As per the clarifications, post stake sale, the government would have “rights similar to that of a minority investor as per Companies Act and shareholders’ agreement.”

“It is a considered decision by Government of India to divest 76 per cent stake and retain a 24 per cent stake. It is noted that ESOPs will also be provided from GoI’s shareholding,” the government said.

According to the 19-page document, the government has clarified that “individuals (other than employees) are not allowed to bid.” “Details of existing slots and code share agreements will be provided at RFP (request for proposal) stage. It is expected that there will not be any impact of disinvestment on existing slots and bilateral rights. Bidders are advised to undertake their own assessment for the impact of disinvestment process on the existing code share agreement,” it noted.