Mumbai: The Maharashtra government has intensified its scrutiny of Ola Electric stores over alleged trade violations, adding to the challenges faced by Bhavish Aggarwal-led electric vehicle (EV) maker. 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.
According to a report in NDTV Profit, until Tuesday, 10 Ola Electric stores in Mumbai were inspected and 10 scooters were impounded. The latest action on Wednesday was taken following a complaint filed by Pritpal Singh and Associates, a Gurugram-based firm.
The complaint alleged that Ola Electric was setting up showrooms, stores, and service centres in Maharashtra using a single trade certificate, which is not permitted under the law.
An inspection report, signed by Deputy Transport Commissioner Ravi Gaekwad, confirmed the allegations, the report said.
Maharashtra’s Transport Minister, Pratap Sarnaik, has 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.
As per the Central Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, and Rule 33 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989, vehicle distributors and manufacturers must obtain a business certificate to register vehicles.
Additionally, Rule 35 states that each showroom, dealership, or establishment engaged in selling or displaying vehicles must have a separate business certificate.
Failure to comply with these rules can result in penalties under Section 192 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. This crackdown comes at a time when Ola Electric is already facing financial and legal troubles.
Last week, vendors Rosmerta Digital Services Private Ltd and Rosmerta Safety Systems Private Ltd moved to initiate insolvency proceedings against an Ola Electric subsidiary over unpaid dues of around Rs 25 crore.
These vendors were responsible for processing vehicle registrations and manufacturing high-security number plates for Ola Electric scooters.
However, the company has informed the stock exchanges about only one petition filed with the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in Bengaluru.
Ola Electric is also under scrutiny for its reported sales figures. In February, the company claimed to have sold 25,000 scooters, but registration data suggests that only about a third of them were actually registered.