POLITICS-Third Front in Disarray

in dealings on the previous day.
The rampant speculation induced by the injection of liquidity by the FIls and their operations in the stock exchanges are increasingly getting reflected in very large non-deliveries of shares, the vast auctions that are taking place on the NSE and now even on the BSE as a result of speculative short-selling, and the large outstandings at the time of the weekly or fortnightly settlements. Auction of about five lakh shares of RIL has become a regular feature; a record number of 22,17 lakh shares of RIL were auctioned on the NSE on March 21 alone. The auctions take place at divergent prices, thus giving use to large arbitrage possibilities. The auction of 5.08 lakh SBI shares took place at a price of Rs 356 against the NSE closing price of Rs 318.60; likewise, RIL shares were auctioned at Rs 262 against the official closing price of Rs 256.85.