Cricketing siblings Hardik and Krunal Pandya’s stepbrother, Vaibhav, who stands accused of defrauding them of Rs 4 crore in a business venture, informed a Mumbai court on Friday that the entire issue was a familial one and merely a misunderstanding. Vaibhav Pandya (37) conveyed this through his legal representative during his remand hearing, wherein his police custody was prolonged until April 16. He was apprehended by the Mumbai police’s Economic Offenses Wing (EOW) on Monday under allegations including criminal breach of trust, criminal intimidation, criminal conspiracy, forgery, and other pertinent sections.

Vaibhav was presented before Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate L. S. Padhen upon the expiration of his initial police remand on Friday. During the hearing, Vaibhav’s lawyer, Niranjan Mundargi, informed the court that the matter stemmed from a misunderstanding within the family and efforts were underway to resolve it amicably.

Mundargi further asserted that his client was fully cooperating with the investigation and did not oppose the police’s request for an extension of remand. The EOW sought a seven-day extension, arguing that the investigation remained incomplete and essential evidence had yet to be retrieved from the accused.

The magistrate, after hearing both sides, noted the probe agency has shown progress in the investigation and that it needed more time to interrogate the accused as there were various financial aspects connected to the case.

According to the police, Vaibhav, Hardik, and Krunal set up a polymer business in partnership in Mumbai in 2021. While Hardik and Krunal invested 40 percent of the capital each, Vaibhav invested 20 percent, and the profit-loss was fixed in the same 2:1:1 ratio.

As per the police, it was decided that Vaibhav would handle the daily operations of the business, but he allegedly set up another firm involved in the same business without informing Hardik and Krunal, in the process violating the partnership provisions.

Due to this development, the profits of the original firm came down, which resulted in a loss of Rs 3 crore to Hardik and Krunal, while Vaibhav’s own profit increased by 20–33 percent.

The accused also allegedly diverted around Rs 1 crore from the firm to his own account, police said, resulting in a total loss of Rs 4 crore to the cricketer siblings.

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