Karnataka HC extends interim relief for BYJU’S EGM decisions until March 28

The Karnataka High Court on Wednesday provided temporary relief to BYJU'S and Founder Byju Raveendran by extending an interim relief to the beleaguered edtech company. The court placed the decisions made by BYJU'S shareholders during the extraordinary general meeting (EGM) on February 23 on hold, until the next hearing on March 28.

“The stay against the purported resolutions at the ‘so-called’ EGM that the investors attempted to pass on 23 Feb 2024 continues and, as such, none of those resolutions can be given effect to. They are unactionable,” a BYJU’S spokesperson said in a statement. “The court has granted time to Think and Learn to file a rejoinder to the response filed by some of the investors.”

At the February 23 EGM, shareholders that were present passed all resolutions presented for a vote, including the dismissal of Raveendran from his position as CEO of the company, and the removal of both Co-founder and his wife Divya Gokulnath and his brother Riju Raveendran from their current management positions and director roles.

However, the interim order put the EGM decisions on hold. “The decision, if any taken by the shareholders of the petitioner company in the extraordinary general meeting scheduled on 23.02.2024, shall not be given effect to...,” the order stated.

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BYJU’S had lodged the petition under Section 9 of The Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996, contending that several investors had breached the articles of association, the shareholders’ agreement, and the Companies Act, 2013 by convening an EGM on the said date.

The investors include General Atlantic, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, MIH EdTech Investments, Own Ventures, Peak XV Partners, SCI Investments, SCHF PV Mauritius, Sands Capital Global Innovation Fund, Sofina, and T Rowe Price Associates.

Besides the Karnataka High Court, a group of four investors—Prosus, General Atlantic, Sofina, and Peak XV—filed a suit alleging oppression and mismanagement by the company’s management and seeking to declare the $200 million rights issue as void before the Bengaluru bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).

The funds from the issue have been deposited in a separate escrow account, following a directive from the NCLT. The NCLT case is listed for further hearing on April 4, 2024.