By Praveen Paramasivam and Ruma Paul
CHENNAI/DHAKA, March 30 (Reuters) - Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani's entertainment venture JioStar has terminated its broadcast deals in Bangladesh for the Indian Premier League cricket tournament, saying its local partner defaulted on payments, according to a document seen by Reuters.
Bangladesh in January banned IPL broadcasts after one of its teams, Kolkata Knight Riders, dropped Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman on Indian cricket board's instruction, just
as tensions rose between the two countries following the killing of a Hindu man in Bangladesh.
Though Bangladesh is reviewing the ban and had on Saturday said any further steps will depend on the opinion of its sports ministry, the termination by JioStar means there will be no local broadcaster for the IPL season, even if the country were to change its stance.
"The agreement stands terminated with immediate effect," JioStar said in a letter dated February 17 to Bangladesh broadcaster TSports, which had sublicensed the rights from JioStar for IPL seasons from 2023 to 2027.
The company cited its partner's "continued failure and default in adhering to the payment timelines stipulated under the agreement".
JioStar, a joint venture of Ambani's Reliance and Walt Disney, did not respond to Reuters queries. TSports and Bangladesh's sports and information ministries also did not respond to requests for comment.
IPL, the world's richest cricket league valued at $18.5 billion, enjoys huge popularity among the cricket-viewing public in Bangladesh, where the game is an obsession like it is in rest of the subcontinent. Its latest season started on March 28.
India-Bangladesh relations have been strained since a political transition in Dhaka in August 2024 disrupted previously close ties under former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, who fled to New Delhi after a mass uprising.
But there are signs of a thaw in the relations after Tarique Rahman, the newly formed government's prime minister, said in February that Bangladesh would engage on the basis of mutual respect and shared interests with its neighbours.
A separate JioStar letter, also dated February 17, showed the company has also terminated its broadcast deals in Bangladesh for the Women's Premier League cricket tournament over similar defaults.
(Reporting by Praveen Paramasivam in Chennai and Ruma Paul in Dhaka; Editing by Aditya Kalra and Arun Koyyur)
