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Sunanda battles to clear her name

DUBAI - This is one controversy which looks sets to drag on into the weekend. Sunanda Pushkar, the lady in the eye of the IPL Kochi storm, has dug her heels in and decided to battle it out to clear her name.

On Thursday, she came out with another strong defence, this time through her lawyer, denying charges levelled at her which he said have tarnished her reputation as a successful businesswoman. He denied any financial impropriety and dismissed allegations she had received illegal payments into her bank account. It was reported that she owned 18 per cent equity in the new IPL team and was acting as proxy for her friend, Shashi Tharoor, Indian Minister of State for Foreign Affairs.

"It is incorrect that she laundered money to her account in Dubai," said Ashish Mehta of Ashish Mehta and Associates, a legal firm based in Dubai. "The facts remain that she worked hard to put together the Kochi consortium and she will continue to work hard in the coming years."

He evaded a direct reply to a question on her reported ties with the minister, saying that it was a personal matter.

Mehta, however, clarified she received sweat equity from the IPL Kochi consortium members led by Rendezvous group in return for her efforts.

Sweat equity is the time and knowledge that an individual or a group of individuals put into a venture for results and business fledglings like IPL Kochi can use such equity to keep costs under check. Her legal counsel defended her reputation as an entrepreneur: "She has been a entrepreneur. She has undertaken brand-building assignments, managed and organised events. She possesses 20 years of hardcore business experience."

Mehta confirmed her last assignment was with Tecom Investments as a manager. "She is well-known and has earned respect due to her business acumen."

It was a blistering defence without doubt and it didn’t end there. Her critics came in for further punishment and Mehta denied she owned a spa in Dubai. He flayed reports which said she was a beautician.

"The facts that have been presented so far have been distorted, untrue, incomplete," he said. "It has been reported that Sunanda Pushkar is a beautician and owns a spa in Dubai.

"We hereby confirm that she has never owned a spa in Dubai. She has never been a beautician. She possesses business skill and has lived in Dubai since 2004."