What misconduct? A report by Reuters, quoting an unnamed source, says an allegation of a sexual assault by Binny surfaced in July — the complainant, a former Flipkart employee, alleged Binny sexually assaulted her some years back. While Binny has denied the allegation, Walmart cited the “lack of transparency” and “other lapses in judgement” on Binny’s part in its letter to the stock exchange.
Stunned by allegations; challenging time for my family and me: Binny Bansal
Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal, who resigned as CEO of Flipkart group on Tuesday said that he had been mulling over leaving Flipkart at the right time since the deal with Walmart. "However, my decision to step down has been accelerated by certain personal events that have taken place in the recent past,” he said. Bansal noted that the allegations were uncorroborated.
Part of the plan? Walmart, which bought 77% stake in Flipkart in May earlier this year for $16 billion, had been contemplating replacing Binny for some months now as he was not involved in the day-to-day operations of the company, according to a report.
So, is he out? Not quite, as Binny, in his letter to Flipkart’s employees, has stated that he will continue to be a member of the company’s board and a significant equity shareholder, though he admitted to the investigation’s verdict about lapses in judgement and lack of transparency on his part.
Binny Bansal's exit: Flipkart staff shocked, but see business as usual
"Everyone is surprised since there was no buzz of anything like this within the organisation," a current employee said, adding that usually hints of such developments make it to the corridors of the company. Binny's departure is not expected to change things much. A former executive noted that Binny was due to transition out of the company anyway.
What Binny's former colleagues said? Binny’s exit from the e-commerce company, just months after its sale to Walmart, has flummoxed his old colleagues. But many of them had predicted in private months ago that Walmart would move ahead without Flipkart founders in tow.
Binny decided to stay under the Walmart leadership even after his co-founder Sachin Bansal quit in disgust just before the $16-billion sale in May this year. “Sachin was the more feisty among the two founders, while an amiable Binny was expected to ensure continuity. Now Binny’s exit under tightly-scripted secrecy clauses, even as he retains board seat and shares, strengthens belief that Walmart was interested in life beyond Bansals,” said a former Flipkart executive.
Flipkart promoter quits after ‘personal misconduct’ probe
Binny said the allegations were “uncorroborated after a thorough investigation completed by an independent law firm”, adding that they had left him “stunned”. Acknowledging that “these have been challenging times for my family and me”, he said, “I am concerned that this may become a distraction for the company and the team, for which I am deeply sorry.”
“One cannot help but feel that Binny was jettisoned for more than one reason,” said another former colleague when asked about allegations of personal misconduct against him. He said the Flipkart grapevine was buzzing about the new owner digging out an old, unproven allegation against Binny some three months ago.
Non-disclosure might have been Binny’s biggest undoing. It’s an issue that many global companies take very seriously. Sources close to Walmart said Binny did not make any disclosure about the allegation of personal misconduct against him to Walmart at the time of the latter’s acquisition of Flipkart earlier this year.
Walmart and Flipkart’s joint statement on the issue also hinted at this. They said that while the investigation did not find evidence to corroborate the complainant’s assertions against Binny, “it did reveal other lapses in judgment, particularly a lack of transparency, related to how Binny responded to the situation”.
from Times of India https://ift.tt/2OJ7KE6
