Chairman of Sahara India Pariwar Subrata Roy comes out of Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) office in Mumbai, India, Wednesday, April. 10, 2013. SEBI on Tuesday summoned Roy to finalize list of assets to be sold for US$4.4 billion refund to 30 millions investors, according to local news reports.
Indian Bollywood actor Amitabh Bacchan (L) and Subrata Roy (R), founder and chairman of the Sahara India Pariwar shake hands during the Global Sounds of Peace concert in Mumbai on January 30, 2013.
The Badminton Association of India (BAI) is not amused. But it also knows it can do little. BAI officials watched helplessly as top seed Saina Nehwal 'retired' from her first round match against Ksenia Polikarpova of Russia at the $120,000 Syed Modi International India Grand Prix Gold Badminton tournament in Lucknow to catch a flight to Hyderabad, that had apparently been booked in advance.
BAI officials are loathe to attribute motives officially but they should have seen this coming. That Saina was not keen to take part was well-known in badminton circles, coming as she was from the Super Series in Shenzhen in China, carrying an injury. The Olympics bronze medallist was obviously more keen to ensure she did not aggravate her injury which could force her out of the more important events in Korea and Malaysia in January.
In a sense it was a repeat of last year. In December 2011, Saina had skipped the same tournament citing fatigue. This time, she gave in to pressure from Sahara India Pariwar (her new sponsor) and BAI officials who felt that Saina playing in India would be good for the game and would bring in spectators. Not an unfair request or argument but Saina who is now in a position to call the shots, was at best willing to play the first round.
In this photograph taken on February 23, 2009, Managing Worker and Chairman of Sahara India Pariwar Subrata Roy Sahara listens to a speaker during a press conference in New Delhi. India's giant Sahara business group, charged with illegally raising USD 4.5 billion from millions of small rural savers, took out huge ads on December 1, 2012, declaring it never does anything 'against the law'.
Subroto Roy, chairman of Sahara India Pariwar, left, and Force India team principal Vijay Mallya walk in the paddock before the start of the Indian Formula One Grand Prix, at the Buddh International Circuit in Noida, on the outskirts of New Delhi, India, Sunday, Oct. 28, 2012.
Sahara India said it has earmarked an investment of Rs 3,000 crore to launch retail outlets-Sahara Q Shops -initially in five states covering 60 cities and towns from August 15.
The company has made an initial allocation of Rs 3,000 crore towards this business. We will invest according to the need as we go ahead, Sahara India Pariwar Chairman Subrata Roy said.
