Consortium alleges unfair process in Rajasthan Royals IPL ownership deal

New Delhi: The consortium of Kal Somani, Rob and Jordan Walton, and Michael Hamp have hit out at the bidding process for the Indian Premier League (IPL) team Rajasthan Royals after they were "robbed off" of their purchase as the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) decided to hand the team over to a consortium of Lakshmi Mittal, Adar Poonawalla and Manoj Badale for Rs 15,660 crore.

As per the new deal, Mittal family will own approximately 75% of Rajasthan Royals, Adar Poonawalla 18% and the remaining 7% by other investors including Manoj Badale.

In a statement, the consortium of Somani-Waltons-Hemp, has said, "Contrary to stories that have been planted in the press, our group was and has always been fully funded, prepared to close with certainty, and never withdrew our bid. We had executed documentation in place and were told that the franchise’s board meeting on Saturday was held to approve our consortium. In the end this was never the case. We approached this process with the highest standards of honesty, integrity, professionalism and in good faith, but unfortunately that wasn’t enough."

The statement further added, "We do not believe the outcome ultimately reflected a level playing field, and it is difficult to reconcile the strength of our bid and preparedness to close with the final decision. While we respect competitive outcomes, we also believe that processes of this significance should be conducted with transparency, consistency, integrity and in good faith.

"While this outcome is both surprising and disappointing, we view this experience as part of a broader journey."

Tags : Indian Premier League, IPL, Rajasthan Royals, Poonawalla, Lakshmi Mittal, Kal Somani, Cricket