On Tuesday, March 1, Ashneer Grover resigned as Managing Director and Director of the Board of BharatPe, a fintech company. Grover's resignation comes days after his wife Madhuri Jain Grover's services as head of controls were terminated on suspicions of theft of funds. Grover has been embroiled in a boardroom struggle following a series of issues.
Grover's resignation occurred "minutes" after hearing the agenda for the next board meeting, which "included submission of the PwC report regarding his conduct and weighing actions based on it," according to a statement from BharatPe. The Board "reserves the right to take action based on the report's conclusions," according to the corporation.
Grover's emergency arbitration petition, which challenged BharatPe's decision to conduct a corporate governance audit at the firm, was recently denied by the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC).
Grover had challenged BharatPe's decision to conduct a governance review in an arbitration with the Singapore International Arbitration Centre.
Why did Ashneer Grover resign from the BharatPe Board of Directors?
Grover said in his resignation letter that the company's board of directors "ousted" him for their "vested interests." He claimed that recent company events appear to be a "war of egos being played to the gallery of the media under the guise of 'good governance.'" Grover further believes that the "investor pattern" for getting rid of an "unwanted" founder is to make him "the villain of the piece," which he claims is being done to him.
Grover added in the letter, "Today I am being insulted and humiliated in the most horrible manner."
Is Ashneer Grover going to keep his shares in the company?
Grover is alleged to have stated in his resignation letter that he would remain the company's single largest individual shareholder.
Grover a 9.5 percent stake in BharatPe, which is worth between Rs 1,800 and Rs 1,900 crore according to the company's most recent financingg