VK Sibal's VRS rejected; to return to parent firm Oil India

Oil regulator V K Sibal, who is being probed by CVC and CBI for allegedly favouring Reliance Industries, today bid farewell to DGH and will tomorrow rejoin parent Oil India (OIL) as it has rejected his application for voluntary retirement.

With Central Vigilance Commission finding a "deficit of trust" in him on the allegations, Sibal was denied an extension as head of India's upstream nodal agency till his superannuation age of 60 years in January 2012.

Petroleum Ministry today issued orders appointing S K Srivastava, Director (Operations) at OIL and former deputy Director General of Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH), as his successor, sources in know of the development said.

Sibal, Director General of DGH, had on October 23 applied for voluntary retirement from OIL, from where he had gone on lien to DGH in 2004. But OIL rejected his application saying he could request for earlier retirement only from his present employer, which was Government of India, sources said.

For OIL to consider his plea, he would have to complete his deputation and join back and then apply for retirement.

Sibal today communicated to his parent firm, to whom he would have reverted back after completion of his lien, that he would join in the same position that he held in 2004 tomorrow and immediately thereafter seek early retirement, they said.

Srivastava has been given additional charge of DG, DGH for a six month period till April 30 during which time the Government will look for a permanent appointment.