Byjus, which has been getting into several problems one after the other, is now stuck in another problem.
BCCI has approached the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) against Byjus after the Enforcement Directorate issued a show-cause notice to Byjus for allegedly violating the Foreign Exchange Management Act.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has approached the NCLT seeking recovery of Rs 160 crore owed by Byju’s company after the contract was terminated.
The BCCI had reportedly filed a petition before the Bengaluru bench of the NCLT last September against Think & Learn Pvt Ltd, which operates Byjus. The case concerned a dispute over the sponsorship rights of the jerseys of the Indian cricket team.
The litigation is related to the sponsorship contract that expires in March 2022. BCCI has sought recovery of this amount, which has been outstanding for the past six months, in a complaint submitted to the National Company Laws Tribunal.
Commenting on this, the spokesperson of the Byjus Company said, “We are negotiating with BCCI to settle this dispute. This will be settled soon,” he said.
Byjus paid the entire amount within the sponsorship period which ended in March 2022. The BCCI had asked Byjus to continue the deal until a new sponsor was found. Byjus wanted out of this deal due to financial conditions. However, the BCCI was persuaded to continue for some time.
Because of this, Byjus has terminated the jersey sponsorship deal with BCCI till November 2023 for 35 million dollars. While Byjus asked to break the contract in December, a new sponsor from the new financial year will be found. For this reason, the agreement was requested to be extended till March 2024.
The litigation is in respect of Rs 160 crore due for this period. Company experts were of the opinion that dues owed to Byjus’ employees were not a top priority for BCCI.
Byjus, an ‘education tech firm’, has been a partner of the Indian cricket team since 2019, and Byju’s logo can be seen on the front of the jersey worn by the team’s players.
