The Delhi High Court has ordered the cancellation of the Look Out Circular (LOC) issued against former BharatPe Managing Director Ashneer Grover and his wife, Madhuri Jain Grover, following the quashing of an FIR by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Delhi Police. Justice Sanjeev Narula issued the directive on Monday after being informed that a coordinate bench had quashed the FIR the previous day.
The petition to quash the FIR was filed by Ashneer Grover and others on the basis of a recent settlement agreement with BharatPe, the fintech company that lodged the initial complaint. The court noted, “Although the copy of the order is not available as of now, this fact has not been disputed by the counsel for the parties involved.”
The court further remarked, “Given the quashing of the underlying FIR, the LOC issued by Respondent No. 3, in the view of the Court, cannot remain in force. Accordingly, the petitions are disposed of with a direction for the Respondents to cancel the LOC against the Petitioners in their records.”
The LOC was issued by the Bureau of Immigration at the request of Delhi Police’s EOW. The FIR, which was registered under Sections 406 (criminal breach of trust), 408 (criminal breach of trust by clerk or servant), 409 (criminal breach of trust by public servant, banker, merchant, or agent), 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 467 (forgery of valuable security), 468 (forgery for the purpose of cheating), 471 (using as genuine a forged document), and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code, was filed following a complaint from BharatPe.
The fintech firm had accused Ashneer Grover, Madhuri Jain Grover, and others, including Deepak Jagdishram Gupta, Shwetank Jain, and Suresh Jain, of misappropriating company funds, causing a loss of approximately ₹80 crore. BharatPe alleged financial irregularities and mismanagement of company assets as part of the charges.
The counsel representing the Grovers and other accused informed the court that a settlement agreement had been reached with BharatPe on September 30. Following this agreement, the parties requested the quashing of the FIR, leading to its dismissal by the High Court.
The settlement marks the conclusion of a high-profile legal battle between Ashneer Grover and BharatPe, which had seen both sides level serious accusations against each other over financial misconduct and corporate governance failures.
The quashing of the FIR and subsequent cancellation of the LOC effectively clear the path for Ashneer Grover and his wife to travel freely without restrictions imposed by the ongoing legal proceedings. The development is seen as a significant step towards resolving the long-standing dispute between the former BharatPe executive and the company.
This decision comes after months of legal wrangling, during which the Grovers faced intense scrutiny over their alleged financial activities, impacting their professional standing in the fintech industry. With the case now settled, the focus is expected to shift back to corporate governance reforms at BharatPe and its efforts to move beyond the controversy.
