In March, the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government did a smart thing. Or, so it appears in hindsight. 

After its multiple attempts to evince interest among investors for the shares of Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) failed amid internal protests against selling those cheap, it revived an old ghost called cross-holding. 

Accordingly, the 10 per cent stake in the refiner, which the Cabinet had cleared for divestment, was placed with its cash-rich sister concerns Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) and Oil India Ltd (OIL). 

The 242 million shares, split equally between the two buyers, fetched the government Rs 5,340 crore at Rs 220 a share. 

Today, a broader market rally and sector-specific sweeteners such as weak crude oil prices and diesel deregulation have taken the IOC stock to Rs 355 - up 60 per cent from the deal price. At a point, it had even touched Rs 400.