Delhi High Court asks Ashneer Grover to maintain decorum

BENGALURU:  The Delhi high court on Monday told the counsel of Ashneer Grover to advise his client to maintain decorum. While hearing the suit filed by fintech firm BharatPe against its former MD Ashneer Grover and his wife Madhuri Jain, the Delhi High Court said the social media has brought us down to this level. “Ask him to maintain decorum,” the court told Grover’s lawyer. BharatPe has accused Grover of running a vicious campaign against the fintech firm. The court granted three weeks’ time to Grover and others to file their responses to the interim applications moved by the fintech firm.

In the last hearing in December, the court had issued summons to Grover and Madhuri, and gave them two weeks’ time to file replies. The fintech unicorn had filed a civil suit and a criminal complaint against Grover, his wife Madhuri Jain, and other family members for misappropriation of company funds. BharatPe has sought over Rs 88 crore in damages from them.

The 2,800-page civil suit in the Delhi High Court alleges misappropriation of company funds by Grover and his family members. The company also filed a criminal complaint with the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) on 17 counts, including cheating, siphoning, criminal breach of trust and embezzlement of funds, against Grover and family.

BharatPe has also filed arbitration under the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) to clawback Grover’s restricted shareholding and the founder title. On January 3,  the company announced that its CEO Suhail Sameer will step down from his position, and the current chief financial officer Nalin Negi will become the company’s interim CEO.