Sahara had initially decided to not renew its contract with the BCCI, the main reason being that it has been locked in bitter legal dispute with the BCCI, primarily concerning the Pune Warriors IPL franchise. Sahara, which owns Warriors, had been asking the BCCI to reduce the annual ownership fee and the matter entered the courts, which asked for it to be resolved through arbitration. Eventually, in October this year, the BCCI terminated the franchise.But, interestingly, as the deadline for the bid approached, Sahara decided to compete for the sponsorship rights; it bought the tender document on the eve of the deadline for submission. It also put in a higher offer than Star: Sahara bid Rs 20.3 million per match for bilateral games and Rs 9.1 million per match for ICC tournaments. However, its bid was rejected on technical grounds.
Reacting to the development, Sahara expressed disappointment at the treatment handed out to it and even questioned BCCI's motive. "This [legal] dispute has been happening from May. So why did they [the BCCI] continue to take money from us under the existing sponsorship rights, which we hold till December 31. They raised the technical issue just because they wanted to disqualify us," Abhijit Sarkar, a Sahara spokesperson, told ESPNcricinfo.According to Sarkar, Sahara officials were asked to sit out as the board's lawyer explained to the marketing committee why the company was not eligible and its various legal wrangles with the BCCI. "If they had an objection, they should have told us when we were picking up the tender," Sarkar said. "Even after us having done that, they could have told us your bid would not be considered since there is a legal dispute going on."