Delaware court's contempt order on Riju Ravindran not enforceable: Sources

Byju's

Delaware court holds no jurisdiction over Riju Ravindran, co-founder of Byju’s, sources close to the company told Moneycontrol. This comes hours after reports suggested that the court imposed penalties on him for contempt after he refused to “disclose or ascertain the location of $533 million in term loan proceeds".

“The Delaware court has no jurisdiction over Riju Ravindran, an Indian citizen. Any conclusions or statements made by the court regarding his actions lack legal authority and are not enforceable,” the source said.

The source also said that the reported "contempt" order on Ravindran is “purely symbolic and has no meaning or bearing”. “It holds no legal weight or practical implications for BYJU'S or its stakeholders,” they added.

This comes as the court has prohibited parties from further transferring or using any of the $533 million in loan proceeds, and found Byju Raveendran and Divya Gokulnath, co-founders of the company, to be working in concert with Ravindran. The court has also ordered the arrest of hedge fund manager William Morton for his repeated refusal to appear in court.

“It's important to note that the bond is trading at a low of 19 cents to a dollar, clearly indicating that things are not going in favour of the lenders. These utterances and observations by the American judge are widely publicised by the lenders as a tactic to apply more pressure on BYJU’S, which refuses to succumb to unfounded claims and unfair settlement terms,” claimed another source close to Byju’s.

(This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.)