BharatPe's Ashneer Grover to go on leave amid viral abuse video row; 'investing in myself'

Caught in a bitter fight with Kotak Mahindra, BharatPe's founder Ashneer Gover on Wednesday announced that he is going on a three-month sabbatical. Taking to Twitter, Grover announced his decision which he claimed was taken after much deliberation and introspection and said that he will be away from the company till March end to 'refresh and rejuvenate' for his next sprint of value creation.

Kotak Mahindra recently released a statement in which it said that it was going to take legal action against Grover and his wife Madhuri for purportedly using abusive language against its staff. This was after an audiotape went viral on social media, which the bank alleged was of their employee being threatened and abused by the couple for failing to secure financing and allocation of share in Nykaa's blockbuster initial public offering last year. The same was, however, refuted by the couple as  "some scamster trying to extort funds (USD 2,40,000 bitcoins)"

"I expect to spend the time thinking more deeply about our next phase of product development and BharatPe's path to profitability and IPO," Grover said on taking time off, adding that he would also be doubling down on investing in himself. 'I am a builder," he further said. 

BharatPe vs Kotak Mahindra

Last year, Grover and his wife Madhuri Grover had sent a legal notice to Kotak Mahindra Bank's managing director and chief executive officer Uday Kotak and to some of his senior management, and sought damages for the gains Grover and his wife would have made after subscribing to shares worth Rs 500 crore in Nykaa besides Rs 1 lakh towards the cost of the legal notice.

"In the event of Kotak's failure to do so, Kotak would be liable to compensate our clients for the losses suffered on account of Kotak's breaches, i.e. the gains our client would have made through the Nykaa IPO, by submitting an application of Rs 500 crore in the HNI segment, less the cost of borrowing computed at 10 per cent for 7 days," the notice read.

Acknowledging the notice, the bank said, "It was received by us and was replied to appropriately at the time, including placing on record our objections to inappropriate language used by Grover." It added, "Appropriate legal action is being pursued."