Indian entrepreneur next owner of Blackburn Rovers?

London, July 20, 2010:
The name of an Indian entrepreneur, Saurin Shah, is doing the rounds as possibly the next owner of Blackburn Rovers, the British Barclays Premier League football club based in Lancashire.

Saurin Shah, who is the nephew of Indian Premier League (IPL) vice-chairman Niranjan Shah, is reported to be in talks about the deal worth between 35 million pounds and 45 million pounds.

Shah, who has shipping interests in Europe, has so far not commented about the buyout of the club. However, the Lancashire Telegraph quoted an agency report saying that the Indian businessman "is already going through Rovers' books". He is claimed to have used brokers in London to find a potential Premier League Club.

Lancashire town has a large Asian community and, like Mumbai - Shah's hometown in India, the area was built on the success of the once great cotton trade.

Niranjan Shah was quoted last month as saying his nephew was interested in the club, while Blackburn chairman John Williams has not ruled out a possible buy-out, according to the newspaper

"We are aware of fresh impetus with regards to the potential sale of the club, with at least one potential new buyer being identified. In the event of a successful sale, and money being made available, we do have a list of players available in the back of our minds," William was quoted as saying then.