New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Thursday issued summons to former BharatPe MD Ashneer Grover in connection with a criminal suit filed by the company seeking to restrain them from making defamatory statements against the fintech unicorn.
The high court gave Ashneer, his wife Madhuri Jain, the then-head of controls and group president of the company, administration and facilities, along with three other relatives two weeks’ time to file their reply to the suit and applications for interim relief filed by BharatPe.
BharatPe has accused the couple of misappropriating funds and filed a criminal case on 17 counts, including criminal breach of trust, embezzlement of funds, as well as a civil suit seeking Rs 88 crore in damages.
The next hearing on the will be on January 9, 2023.
“Pass a decree of permanent injunction restraining the defendants (Ashneer Grover and others) and/or anyone on their behalf in any manner whatsoever from making defamatory/derogatory statements concerning the petitioner (BharatPe), its directors, employees and/or publicising, printing the same in any medium or form whatsoever,” the suit said, also seeking direction to the defendants to disclose their assets.
Ashneer resigned from the company in March while his wife was removed from her post.
Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, who appeared for BharatPe, said that Ashneer, his wife and other relatives were carrying out a “vicious and vitriolic” campaign against the company which has a large number of foreign investors.
Showing the court several tweets posted by Ashneer and his relatives following his ouster from the company earlier this year, Rohatgi said: “These are all his family members. They were sacked from the company. We have a suit for damages as well.”
Ashneer and Madhuri’s counsel said they were not served with a copy of the suit.
With the judge observing that an advance copy of the suit should have been served to the defendants, Rohatgi made the point that the reason they did not do so was because Ashneer would have “again gone on a rampage” the moment he came to know about it.
