Key Points
Government questions 16,348 unregistered Ola scooters
Vendor disputes over Rs 25 crore unpaid dues
Maharashtra confiscates 36 scooters in inspections
Ola shares drop nearly 4% amid scrutiny
The show-cause notice, dated March 21, seeks details about Ola scooters of various models sold and registered last month, reports NDTV Profit.
The Bhavish Aggarwal-led electric vehicle (EV) maker has been asked to respond to whether Ola scooters sold in February are on the road without registrations; whether Ola scooters were delivered to customers without number plates; and whether Ola scooters are being sold from stores without trade certificates.
It was not clear yet if the EV maker had responded to the ministry’s letter within the seven-day deadline.
Ola Electric claimed to have sold 25,000 scooters in February but only 8,652 of them were registered due to renegotiation of contracts with vendors that handled vehicle registrations.
The vendors, Rosmerta Group, subsequently filed insolvency petitions against the company over unpaid dues of up to Rs 25 crore.
Ola Electric said it has “amicably settled all outstanding dues between its wholly owned subsidiary, Ola Electric Technologies Private Limited, and the Rosmerta Group” and the Rosmerta Group has filed the memo for withdrawal of the petitions filed before the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), Bengaluru.
On Friday, Ola Electric shares fell 3.81 per cent to Rs 52.97 apiece on the BSE.
Last week, the Maharashtra government intensified its scrutiny of Ola Electric stores over alleged trade violations. Officials from five regional transport offices inspected 26 Ola Electric stores in Mumbai and Pune to check for trade certificates, according to sources. As a result, authorities also confiscated a total of 36 Ola Electric scooters.
Maharashtra’s Transport Minister, Pratap Sarnaik, ordered immediate action on the complaint and asked for a report on the matter. Officials from four Mumbai RTOs and one Pune RTO carried out the inspections.
Comments:
Rahul K.
Not surprised after seeing so many Ola scooters without plates in my area. Hope they fix this soon.
Priya M.
This is why we need stricter EV regulations! Can't have companies cutting corners in the name of growth 🚨
Arjun S.
My Ola S1 Pro took 3 weeks to get registered. Now I understand why... disappointing from such a big brand.
Neha T.
As an investor, this makes me nervous. The 25cr vendor dispute + registration issues = serious operational red flags 🚩
Vikram J.
They're growing too fast without proper systems. My friend's Ola had battery issues within 2 months. Quality > quantity!
