02-Jul-2024 07:17 PM
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Bengaluru, July 2 (Reporter) The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday reversed a decision by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), Bengaluru, that had stopped ed-tech company Byju’s from issuing more shares to its current investors.
Justice SR Krishna Kumar announced the court’s decision after considering the case last week. The case will now go back to the NCLT for further review.
A lawyer for some of Byju’s investors asked the court to delay the implementation of Tuesday’s decision so that they could challenge it, but the court declined.
Justice Kumar explained that he had given both sides a chance to reach an agreement to send the case back to the NCLT with their consent. However, the investors and the company could not agree, so he had to decide the matter on merit.
"The investors were not ready to agree, and the promoters did not want to concede anything, so I had no choice," he said.
The full details of the judgment will be available on Wednesday.
The court's decision follows two petitions challenging the NCLT's order. The NCLT had stopped Byju’s from issuing more shares on June 12 after four investors — MIH EdTech Investments, General Atlantic Singapore, Peak XV Partners Operations LLC, and Sofina — claimed that Byju's parent company, Think & Learn, was being mismanaged and oppressive.
Byju’s and its top executives, including CEO Byju Raveendran, filed petitions against the NCLT's order. Their lawyers argued that the NCLT's decision lacked sufficient reasoning and should be overturned.
On the other hand, the investors' lawyers argued that Byju’s had violated a previous agreement not to issue more shares and that the NCLT’s order should be viewed alongside its earlier decisions, which together provided enough justification.
During the court session, various allegations of misconduct against Byju's management were discussed, which the company’s lawyers strongly denied.
Byju’s and its directors were represented by Senior Advocates KG Raghavan, Dhyan Chinappa, and advocate Dr Rishab Gupta, along with advocates Manmeet Singh and Sairam Subramanian from Saraf and Partners.
The investors were represented by Senior Advocates Udaya Holla, Sudipto Sarkar, and Satish Parasaran, with advocates Shankh Sengupta and Tine Abraham from Trilegal...////...