New Delhi, July 27 -- The Delhi High Court on Monday asked the Centre to clarify whether broader policy considerations formed the basis for rejecting Vedanta Ltd's bid for a 10-year extension of its production-sharing contract for the offshore oil and gas block in Gujarat's Cambay Basin.

A division bench of Justices Dinesh Mehta and Rajneesh Kumar Gupta, hearing Vedanta's appeal against a single judge's order upholding the rejection, observed that if the Union government's decision was influenced by a broader policy shift, it ought to disclose that position before the court.

"We want the Union of India's response. If there is any other reason, the government can satisfy the court. It should either come from the Attorney General's mouth,...