ICI's Indian deal blocked

ICI's Indian deal blocked

BOMBAY (AFP): India's largest paint company said here yesterday it was determined to stop Britain's ICI buying "even a single share" in the firm.

"Under no circumstances will we allow ICI (Imperial Chemical Industries) to have even a single share of our company," Asian Paints India Ltd vice-chairman Ashwin Dani told AFP.

The two companies are locked in a legal battle after the multinational bought out one of the four founding partners of Asian Paints, taking control of 9.1 percent of the company's shares.

ICI paid 1.28 billion rupees (US$35 million) for the stake last month. The deal, however, has still to be approved by India's Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB).

FIPB has told ICI it will have to prove Asian Paints's board of directors backed the purchase.

Asian Paints, however, has said it would never approve the deal while Indian Industry Minister Murasoli Maran described ICI as an unwelcome "corporate raider".