Adding fuel to the ongoing Ashneer Grover-BharatPe saga, multiple sources confirmed on Wednesday that Grover allegedly sold thousands of free passes during the Indian Premier League (IPL) second leg in Dubai last year and pocketed a few. crores from the sale of most of these collars.
BharatPe was the tournament’s global partner which was moved from India to the United Arab Emirates due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 31 matches were played in Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi over 27 days, from September 19 to October 15 last year.
Sources close to the development said IANS that Grover allegedly sold each pass for at least 750 dirhams (around Rs 15,000) and in the process, made several crores, which were deposited in an account in Dubai.
Typically, a global partner gets around 700 free passes for a game and for 31 games, the fintech platform had thousands of passes to distribute, most of which were sold, sources said.
Some BharatPe employees told IANS that they received passes for common stands at IPL 2021 in the UAE, but not for VIPs.
It was the first time since 2019 that the IPL was played in front of an audience. Matches were played in Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi with a limited number of places available keeping in mind COVID-19 protocols and UAE government regulations.
In June last year, the International Cricket Council (ICC) entered into a strategic partnership with BharatPe from 2021 to 2023. The deal ensured BharatPe’s involvement and integration at all ICC events throughout the term.
Grover said at the time that this association “will allow us to build a stronger relationship with our existing merchants, as well as better engage with millions of new small merchants across India.”
The fintech platform recently fired his wife Madhuri Jain Grover over alleged financial irregularities during his tenure as the crore-crore chief audit officer.
After that, Grover resigned, saying he was being forced out of a company that “I am one of the founders of.” In a statement, BharatPe said he “reserves all rights to pursue further legal action against him (Ashneer Grover) and his family.”
Earlier this month, the fintech platform revealed that Grover, his wife Madhuri Jain and their relatives were engaged in extensive embezzlement of company funds and grossly misusing company money to finance their lavish lifestyle.
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Posted: Wednesday March 16th 2022, 6:02 PM IST