“If you have both decided to enter the gutter, then please remain there,” the bench remarked
The Delhi High Court, on May 16, directed Ashneer Grover, the former Managing Director of BharatPe, along with officials of the fintech company, to refrain from employing disrespectful and damaging language towards one another.
Justice Prateek Jalan expressed his dissatisfaction with the language used by Ashneer Grover and certain officials from BharatPe, as they directed derogatory remarks towards each other on social media platforms and in the press.
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“This is not a street fight between some rival gangs in the corner of the city. These are corporate people, educated people, articulate people who can surely resolve their grievances against each other in a more refined way,” the bench remarked. “If you have both decided to enter the gutter, then please remain there,” it added.
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The Court addressed a petition filed by BharatPe, which claimed that Ashneer Grover has been posting defamatory tweets since the Delhi Police’s Economic Offences Wing (EOW) filed an FIR against him and his family members. BharatPe submitted this application as part of an ongoing defamation lawsuit related to Grover’s previous tweets.
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During the proceedings in January 2023, the Court had instructed Grover’s legal representative to counsel him on maintaining proper conduct and decorum.
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During the recent hearing, Senior Advocates Rajiv Nayar and Dayan Krishnan represented BharatPe and highlighted specific tweets made by Grover, claiming that the company had spent a significant amount of money on “lawyers and fixers.”
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Krishnan further suggested that if Grover had any concerns regarding BharatPe’s complaint against him or the FIR filed by the Delhi Police, he could address them through proper legal channels within the criminal proceedings.
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Advocate Giriraj Subramanium, representing Grover, drew attention to certain tweets made by BharatPe officials. Subramanium pointed out that these officials had used similar language against his client on social media platforms and made allegations against Grover in the press.
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After examining the content, the bench remarked that such statements should not be made by either side.
Source: MoneyControl
