Ashneer Grover Defends Rs 1.5 Crore BluSmart Investment Amid SEBI Crackdown
BharatPe Co-founder Calls Himself a ‘Victim’ of the Situation
Ashneer Grover, BharatPe’s co-founder and a personal investor in BluSmart, has addressed the SEBI crackdown on Gensol Engineering and BluSmart’s sudden suspension of operations. Grover admitted to investing Rs 1.5 crore in BluSmart and Rs 25 lakh in Matrix, expressing concern about the company’s current predicament.
Grover’s Investments and Concerns
- Invested Rs 1.5 crore in BluSmart
- Invested Rs 25 lakh in Matrix
- Calls himself a ‘victim’ of the situation
“Dragging my and my company’s name in this Gensol/BluSmart fiasco is rather shameful,” Grover stated publicly. “In fact, I am the ‘victim’ of the current scenario, having personally invested in BluSmart.”
Grover’s Role in Gensol and BluSmart
- Holds no operational role in either Gensol or BluSmart
- Simply a shareholder, not involved in managerial or financial decisions
- Hopes BluSmart can survive the current crisis ‘for the sake of its stakeholders.’
Grover offered to make his bank account and tax return details public to prove the legitimacy of his involvement. He clarified that in a private limited company, it is the responsibility of incoming shareholders to declare their source of funds, not the company’s obligation to verify them.
SEBI Crackdown and BluSmart Service Shutdown
The controversy started after a SEBI investigation accused Anmol and Puneet Singh Jaggi, Gensol Engineering’s co-founders, of serious financial misconduct. The probe revealed that the promoters had diverted company funds for personal gains, including buying a luxury apartment in Gurugram, inflating Gensol’s stock prices through manipulated trades, and using company funds for unrelated personal expenses. The investigation also highlighted forged documents and violations of corporate governance norms. In response, SEBI barred both promoters from the securities market and ordered a forensic audit of Gensol’s financial records.
