IndiGo Co-Founder Rahul Bhatia Tells Florida Court That His Partner Gangwal Has Been ‘Non-Cooperative, Obstructive’

IndiGo co-founder Rahul Bhatia has told a district court in Florida, USA, that his partner Rakesh Gangwal has a “history of being uncooperative and obstructive” to petitioners’ requests, as he sought a court order to obtain documents from his partner.

The allegation was made in Bhatia’s latest request to the US district court of Florida to accept his application for documents from his partner Gangwal, to be used in a separate case he filed in the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA).

Earlier, Bhatia had alleged that Gangwal who is a US resident breached the shareholders’ agreement signed between the IndiGo founders.

Bhatia’s counsel cited examples of Gangwal’s alleged uncooperative and obstructive stance, saying he had rejected “requests” to remove updates of his feud with Bhatia from his website and to not make further public disclosures to 'third parties' in connection with IndiGo or the arbitration claimants.

So far, Gangwal has failed to produce any documents to substantiate allegations underlying his complaints to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), Bhatia’s lawyer said in his accompanying declaration.

After the IndiGo board, which includes Gangwal, unanimously decided on July 20, 2019, to expand its size to 10 members from six and notified the stock exchanges, Gangwal changed his mind two days later and declared that the resolution be unwound, Bhatia’s lawyer stated.

IndiGo’s two founders have been locked in a public feud over issues including shareholder rights which were enjoyed and allegedly misused by Bhatia, alleged related-party transactions between IndiGo and companies affiliated to Bhatia’s IGE Group, besides the absence of a woman director.