'Finally…,' says Ronnie Screwvala on Byju's shareholders calling EGM to oust current management, reconstitute board

Ronnie Screwvala

UpGrad co-founder Ronnie Screwvala took to social networking platform X supporting the decision of Byju’s' major shareholders to call an extraordinary general meeting and oust the current management, reconstituting the board.

“Finally someone smelt the coffee! Hope it's not a whiff and then whimper but they will stay the course and get this done - for the whole ecosystem! For India as an investment destination! For just credibility overall of an otherwise sunrise and sunshine sector,” said Screwvala in his post on February 1.

Screwvala is also a media maven and serial entrepreneur, who was among the last men standing in the brutal cable television business with UTV, a production company he founded nearly three decades ago.

The industry expert’s comments come hours after the investors shared a statement seeking an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) to adopt resolutions on outstanding governance, financial mismanagement and compliance issues.

The investors also wish for a reconstitution of the Board of Directors, so that it is no longer controlled by the founders of Byju's parent company Think & Learn; and a change in leadership of the company.

At present, the company's board consists of founder and CEO Byju Raveendran himself, his co-founder and wife Divya Gokulnath, and his brother Riju Ravindran, following the departure of other members last year.

The shareholders’ statement follows Byju’s board's decision to raise capital through the rights issue mechanism, at a post-money valuation of $225 million, which is 99 percent lower than the company's last funding round which happened at a valuation of $22 billion, the sources said.