Days after winning their first-ever Indian Premier League title, the whispers about the Royal Challengers Bengaluru started to spread, with the name of Karnataka deputy Chief Minister emerging as a potential buyer.
This was especially after the franchise found themselves in the stampede controversy the next day after winning the trophy during the celebrations.
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The first report about the potential sale came from Bloomberg, which said the owners of the franchise, Diageo, were in talks with the advisers to see the potential of the sale.
These reports led to the United Spirits Ltd, which is the Indian unit of Diageo getting a significant increase in their stock price at the Bombay Stock Exchange — leading them to come out and dismiss the rumors.
See what D. K. Shivakumar, the alleged potential buyer of the franchise, had to say.
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Karnataka deputy CM dismisses reports of buying RCB
D. K. Shivakumar, who was present in the celebrations of RCB's title win spoke to ANI about his association with the Karnataka Cricket Board and made a claim of not even drinking the Royal Challenge drink while clearing the air.
"I am not a madman. I'm just a member of the Karnataka Cricket Association from my younger days, that's all. I don't have time, though I had offers to be part of the management — Why do I need RCB? I don't even drink Royal Challenge," Shivakumar told ANI.