Rajasthan Royals on Tuesday issued a statement clarifying the holding pattern and said it would like to clarify certain misconceptions about the franchise, which have been raised through the media.
The statement says: “ The Rajasthan Royals franchise bid was successful, with full compliance of BCCI guidelines, in a process conducted with the committee members of BCCI in January 2008. Full details of the consortium bid structure and the way the company would be set up were contained in the original submission to the BCCI in January 2008. The structure has been completely transparent and in accordance with regulatory guidelines ever since.”
The statement further says: “The corporate structure was established in accordance with the details provided in the bid submission shortly after the bid. It was not established prior to the bid, as we obviously did not know if the bid would be successful. Moreover, the time allotted between the Invitation to Tender (27 December 2007), and the bid submission date (23 January 2008), would not have allowed sufficient time to incorporate the intended structure with an Indian entity.
“The investors agreed to submit the bid using a consortium, led by UK-based Emerging Media (IPL) Ltd. The other entities in the consortium were disclosed in the bid submission documents.
“Subsequently, on 8 March 2008, an Indian company Jaipur IPL Cricket Pvt Ltd was incorporated, as detailed in the bid submission. We then executed the franchise agreement on 14 April 2008. The ownership of the consortium did not change between the award of the bid on 23 January 2008 and the signing of the franchise agreement on 14 April 2008.
“As part of our strategy to broaden our shareholder base, in February 2009 Kuki Investments Ltd (Raj Kundra and Family) acquired an 11.7% stake in EM Sporting Holdings Limited, the parent company of Jaipur IPL Cricket Pvt Ltd, which was fully disclosed to the BCCI/IPL..
“According to the BCCI/IPL rules, the IPL was entitled to 5% of the increase in the pro-rata value of the franchise. In February 2009 the Rajasthan Royals contacted the BCCI to agree the precise definition, to agree the amount that needed to be paid, and we are still awaiting a response. For absolute clarity the payment has been fully accrued for within our accounts.
“The current shareholders of EM Sporting Holdings Limited, who all have multiple business interests and independent means, are as follows: Emerging Media (IPL) Ltd (Manoj Badale - 32.4%), Tresco International Ltd (Suresh Chellaram Family - 44.2%), Blue Water Estate Ltd (Lachlan Murdoch - 11.7%) and Kuki Investments Ltd (Raj Kundra & Family - 11.7%). There are no other shareholders.
“In accordance with regulatory filings, we subsequently volunteered to make a full disclosure application (in July 2009) through the Government's FIPB (Foreign Investment Promotion Board) process. The relevant information submitted in that application, including details of the structure, now appears to be publicly available.
“Our application was not initially accepted due to a miscommunication of submission timings. Our subsequent application in January 2010 has not been rejected. We are well advanced towards fulfilling the procedural steps and additional information requests necessary to satisfy the FIPB.
“Rajasthan Royals have always conducted themselves with integrity and look forward to co-operating with the BCCI to ensure continued public support for the IPL”, the statement concludes.
