India's stance on takeover bids

Not convinced by the assurance that business takeovers would be decided on commercial basis, India told the French authorities in no uncertain terms that colour and nationality should not be criteria in such deals.

"We have told them that colour and nationality should not be a criteria in such deals... it should be on the basis of purely commercial considerations," Kamal Nath, Commerce and Industry Minister told PTI.

Nath's comments came close on the heels of Indian liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya pulling out of a bid to acquire French champagne maker Taittinger after resistance from local groups.

Mittal Steel - which has headquarters in Amsterdam but is run from London by India-born Lakshmi Mittal, had also faced stiff resistance for his bid to acquire Luxembourg-based rival Arcelor, which has now decided to merge with another European company Russia's Severstal.

French government should not intervene in takeover bids launched by Indian entrepreneurs, he said, and asked why there was no resistance to acquisitions of European firms by fellow companies from the same continent such as Severstal.

Responding to Nath's statement, French Trade Minister Christine Lagarde assured there was no such attitude on the part of French government and Paris did not discriminate on the basis of colour, nationality or race.

"This is not the way we operate and it is a matter for shareholders to decide," Lagarde said. Nath also sought removing restrictions on cross-border investments and pursue globalisation in the true sense.