Robin Uthappa faces arrest warrant for alleged fraud in provident fund contributions

Robin Uthappa faces arrest warrant for alleged fraud in provident fund contributions

Ex-India cricketer Robin Uthappa finds himself in hot water as an arrest warrant has been issued against him. The warrant is in relation to an alleged fraud involving provident fund contributions of employees, who work at a clothing company run by him. As per reports, Uthappa needs to clear the payment till December 27 or face arrest. The amount is reported to be around Rs 24 lakh.

Uthappa, who was part of India's 2007 T20 World Cup-winning squad, is the director of Bengaluru-based Centaurus Lifestyle Brands Pvt Ltd. A report in NDTV stated that the company has failed to pay damages of about Rs 23,36,602, which will be recovered from the ex-cricketer. The arrest warrant was issued on December 4.

Uthappa is accused of deducting provident funds from the salary of his employees but not depositing the same in their accounts.

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Robin Uthappa cricket career

Uthappa had the reputation of being an explosive batter and represented India in 46 ODIs, and 13 T20Is. He amassed 1183 runs combined in both formats and scored seven half-centuries. Uthappa's most telling contribution in international cricket came during the Group Stage tie against Pakistan in the inaugural edition of the T20 World Cup held in South Africa. The right-handed batter had then scored 50 off 39 balls, his only half-century in T20Is, and came back to hit the stumps during the bowl-out after the match had ended in a tie. He also played a blistering knock of 86 during an ODI when India toured to England in 2006.

While his India outings may appear significantly less, Uthappa has actively participated in the Indian Premier League (IPL), where he represented six franchises in total, including Chennai Super Kings, Kolkata Knight Riders, Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore, and Rajasthan Royals. Uthappa made 205 appearances in the cash-rich league, in which he amassed 4952 runs at a strike-rate of 130.55 and has 27 half-centuries under his name.