London: The multi-billionaire Hinduja Group seems to have an edge over their rivals in the bid to acquire Hutchison Telecommunications International's Stake in Hutchison Essar.

"We have received a favourable response from Hutch. They have welcomed our interest and waiting for our proposal. A decision will be taken by the end of this month," Gopichand Hinduja, President of the Hinduja Group, who was on his way from Mumbai to Doha told sources.

He said "We sent them a message reminding them of our understanding that whenever they disinvested they would also give us an opportunity.

"Hutch was our partner but due to consolidation our share-holding went down to five or six per cent, which was not consistent with our business philosophy. We always believe that our investment in companies should be 51 per cent or more," he said.

He said "Our relationship with Hutch has always been very good. We have lived together in the Gujarat telecom circle in India.

"We were the first to get into the telecom sector in India when we were awarded Gujarat and Tamil Nadu circles. We have developed the Gujarat circle. We know the ins and outs of the business," he said.

A report in today's Times indicated that the Hindujas have assets worth 8 billion pounds (Rs.68,000 crores).

State Street, a key Vodafone shareholder told The Times that the Vodafone should consider abandoning its 18 billion dollars (Rs 81,000 crore) pursuit of Hutchison Essar with the Hinduja Group entering the scene.