A couple of days after Headlines Today reported a conflict of interest involving Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, it has now emerged that his equity does not just stop with Rhiti Sports Management, the company which manages him and three other fellow players Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja and Pragyan Ojha.Headlines Today has learnt that Captain Cool has invested heavily in other Rhiti group companies. Documents with Headlines Today reveal that Dhoni and the promoter of Rhiti Sports Management, Arun Pandey, pursue close and diverse business interests in areas ranging from motor sports to image licensing.
This intricate web certainly compromises Dhoni's position as the Team India captain. As per the documents, the Mahi-Pandey empire is spread across at least three other companies.
Rhiti MSD Alamode Private Limited, which is registered with the same address as the parent company - Rhiti Sports Management - deals with image licensing. Another company -- Sportsfit World Overseas -- is involved in the fast growing fitness sector. Yet another company - Rhiti MSD-n-Motorsports - as the name suggests, deals with motor sport, specifically, motorcycle racing which Dhoni himself is passionate about.
Headlines Today also accessed documents that reveal details of the shareholding pattern, linking Dhoni and his family to the four companies.
Out of Rhiti Sports Management's 2 lakh shares, Dhoni holds 30,000. Though Pandey says Dhoni no longer has any stake, he has given no evidence in support. Pandey holds the lion's share in the venture with two of his relatives having token stake.
Dhoni is the majority stakeholder in Rhiti MSD Alamode. Out of its 10,000 shares, Dhoni holds 6,400 while his wife Sakshi has a token number of 100 shares. Pandey and Rhiti Sports have the remaining stake in the company.
The web of Dhoni's business interests is complex. Alamode, the company in which he has majority stake, has in turn invested heavily in Sportsfit World Overseas Private Limited. It has bought 7,300 shares while the rest is owned by former Reebok India marketing chief Sajid Shamin.
This company deals with motor racing, an area very close to Dhoni's heart. And so, it is not surprising that Alamode invested heavily in Rhiti MSD-n-Motorsports. Alamode's board sanctioned a whopping Rs.2.25 crore to back MSD-n-Motorsports in July 2012.
Pandey might cry hoarse that Dhoni has no business interests in the Rhiti group of companies and hence there is no conflict of interest, but facts say something else. Pandey has given no evidence so far to back his claim that Dhoni has no business interest any more in Rhiti.
Even if one were to take Pandey's claim on face value, Dhoni's stakes in other Rhiti companies clearly compromise the Indian captain's position
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