The BharatPe boardroom row continues to simmer and brew with founder Ashneer Grover reaching out to the board with a letter, seeking a written apology from CEO Suhail Sameer. The development comes just a day after Suhail Sameer made a public remark on LinkedIn and told Grover’s sister that his brother “stole money” from the company.
In a response to his comment, Grover wrote a letter, reviewed by Press Trust of India, where he said Suhail’s language is not only defamatory but a lie and an admission of the company being bankrupt. In the letter, Grover further said, “Going by precedents and self-proclaimed high standards of this board, the CEO should be immediately served a show cause notice for his despicable public behaviour and immediately put on leave of absence to manage the damage on the brand of the company.”
Ashneer further remarked that BharatPE CEO Suhail Sameer must “prove” to the board that he was not under the influence of alcohol or drugs when he made the remark on LinkedIn.
The Facts of the Matter
The BharatPe board VS Ashneer Grover saga is a classic ‘he said-she said’ tale in the business setting. The tale has unfortunately devolved into senior executives of a fintech giant, with a net worth of millions, resorting to making personal remark on public platform.
It all started earlier last week when BharatPe CEO Suhail Sameer tagged BharatPe founder and now ousted Ashneer Grover’s sister Aashima in a comment on LinkedIn. On Friday, an alleged former BharatPe employee took to LinkedIn and wrote an elaborate post, complaining that he has not been paid salary for the month of march.
The Suhail Sameer-Aashima Grover Spat
The post received a lot of traction, and even Ashneer Grover and his sister took to the comments section. Ashneer’s sister, Aashima commented and called BharatPe senior staff as a “shameless bunch”.
This was when company CEO Suhail Sameer made a personal remark and replied to the comment with – “Behen – tere bhai ne saara Paisa Chura liya (your brother stole all the money). Very little left to pay salaries”.
After receiving a lot of flak for his personal remark, Suhail apologized and accepted that his comment was “out of line”.
Ashneer Grover Writes Letter to BharatPe Board
A day after the incident, Ashneer wrote a letter to the BharatPe board, seeking a written apology from Suhail Sameer. The letter, dated April 8, was reviewed by PTI and shared on several news platforms.
“As a Board which under the Chairmanship of Rajnish Kumar has claimed to be the epitome of corporate governance, I would want to ask what action is the Board going to take against Suhail Sameer? Going by precedents and self proclaimed high standards of this Board, the CEO should be immediately served a show cause notice for his despicable public behaviour and immediately put on leave of absence to manage the damage on the Brand of the company.”
Also Read: Ashneer Grover Shares Picture of Alleged Rs 1 Crore Dining Table, Says “Not Even 0.5% of That”
Grover Seeks Proof that Suhail Was Not Under Influence
“Suhail has to conclusively prove to the board that he was not under the influence of alcohol and drugs when he put the said reply on LinkedIn,” Grover further said.
Grover further demanded BharatPe chairman Rajnish Kumar to be immediately removed. “The current incident clearly brings out the fact that Rajnish Kumar condoning the life threat to me by Bhavik Koladiya from his own house and all the planned media leaks leading to my resignation in self respect, has further emboldened the current management to act as hooligans,” Grover in his letter wrote.
Grover Threatens Defamation Suit, Involves Women’s Commission
Ultimately, Ashneer said that if he and his sister do not get a written apology from Suhail Sameer, they would seek damages and will pursue defamation case against the current BharatPe CEO.
“In absence of a written apology, I and my sister reserve our rights to seek damages and pursuing criminal defamation against Suhail Sameer and the BharatPe Board. My sister, whose reputation has been irreparably damaged by this comment, will also be in her right to take up this with the Women’s commission and appropriate authorities,” he wrote.
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