Ola Electric Raids Expand To Jabalpur, Indore In Madhya Pradesh
At least six Ola Electric stores—two in Jabalpur and four in Indore—were raided on March 12 and March 18. About 14 scooters were impounded in Jabalpur, none in Indore.
Troubles for Ola Electric Mobility Ltd. have deepened further with fresh raids on its stores in Madhya Pradesh.
At least six Ola Electric stores—two in Jabalpur and four in Indore—were raided on March 12 and March 18, respectively, according to inspection letters seen by NDTV Profit. All the so-called "experience centres" were found to be retailing electric scooters without trade certificates.
At least 14 scooters were impounded in Jabalpur, none in Indore.
The stores have been served a three-day notice to explain the situation.
The news of the Madhya Pradesh raids follows those in Maharashtra.
Over the past three days, officials from five regional transport offices inspected as many as 26 Ola Electric stores in Mumbai and then Pune to check for trade certificates. While some were operating without trade certificates, several were found sharing a single one among them.
According to the Central Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, and Rule 33 of Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989, vehicle distributors and manufacturers have to obtain a business certificate for registering vehicles. Rule 35 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989, states that every establishment, showroom or dealership engaged in the sale, trade or exhibition of vehicles is required to obtain a separate business certificate from the registering authority.
If such a trade certificate is missing, then the vehicle distributor and manufacturer will be liable to penalty under Section 192 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988.
To be sure, the “inspections” add to the troubles of a company that was once India’s largest electric two-wheeler maker amid a slump in sales.
Just last week, two of Ola Electric’s vendors—Rosmerta Digital Services Pvt. and Rosmerta Safety Systems Pvt.—sought to initiate insolvency proceedings against a subsidiary of the company over unpaid dues of about Rs 25 crore. Ola Electric has informed the stock exchanges of only one petition filed with the National Company Law Tribunal, Bengaluru. The companies processed vehicle registrations and generated high-security registration number plates, respectively, for Ola Electric scooters.
Additionally, the company is facing questions over the legality of its sales figures reported in February. Ola Electric claimed to have sold 25,000 scooters last month but only a third of them could be registered. The VAHAN numbers aren’t looking up in March either.
