BYJU’S founder gets big blow from Singapore court, Ravindran gets six months jail and fine of lakhs
Delhi. A Singapore court sentenced Byju’s founder Byju’s founder Byju Raveendran to six months in jail in a contempt case for not providing sought information. However, Raveendran said that the decision was only related to the legal process and he had done no wrong. He said he would appeal against the decision. This decision is considered to be the biggest legal setback yet for the founder of Byju’s, once considered India’s biggest startup.
Byju’s is battling investor disputes, debt lawsuits and continuing operations due to a sharp decline in business following the Covid pandemic. The court ordered Raveendran to surrender before authorities, deposit 90,000 Singapore dollars (about US$70,500) in legal expenses and produce documents related to his stake in a Singapore-based company called Bear Investco Pte.
Bear Investco Pte had a stake in a company linked to Byju’s. It was not immediately clear whether Raveendran was present in Singapore when the order was given. His lawyers said he was considering appealing the decision and requesting a temporary stay of the court order. This lawsuit was filed by a subsidiary of Qatar Investment Authority.
This company had invested in Byju’s at a time when the company was struggling with employee layoffs and increasing financial pressure. This contempt of court case is the latest in a series of major legal controversies involving Byju’s. These also include the ongoing lawsuit in America, where the lending parties are demanding compensation for the loss caused by the ‘term loan’ of US $ 1.2 billion.
In a statement issued after the decision, Raveendran said that negotiations with lenders and investors, including GLAS Trust and Qatar Investment Authority, had almost reached the final stage. He described the new legal move as “needlessly escalating the matter.” He said, “All parties have also agreed that I or the other founders have done no wrong.
Comments are closed.