SC Orders Aakash To Not Amend Articles Of Association

In yet another twist in the BYJU’S saga, the Supreme Court (SC) has reportedly asked Aakash Educational Services to not give effect to the resolution proposed at its extraordinary general meeting (EGM) to amend its articles of association (AoA).

The amendments were said to have been proposed so that embattled BYJU’S founder Byju Raveendran can sell a part of his stake in the educational institution.

According to a report by Bar and Bench, a bench of CJI Sanjiv Khanna and Justice PV Sanjay Kumar asked Aakash to move the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) and ordered a stay on the resolution till the first hearing in the NCLAT.

The bench directed Aakash to approach the NCLAT in seven days. Further, the apex court also directed the Appellate Tribunal to decide on the issue uninfluenced by the Karnataka High Court’s (HC’s) decision. 

Earlier this week, the Karnataka HC ordered an interim stay on the National Company Law Tribunal’s (NCLT) order barring Aakash from amending its AoA. 

Following the HC’s ruling,  Blackstone (via subsidiaries Singapore VII Topco Pte Ltd and BCP Asia Athena ESC) approached the SC the very same day. 

On November 20, the NCLT had barred Aakash from amending its AoA and asked it to maintain its governing structure until a final verdict is issued. 

However, the HC, in its November 26 order, said, “It is settled law that reasons are an objective expression of an opinion, and the Tribunal have to substantiate their orders in interest of legality, propriety, and in adherence to principles of natural justice.” 

Amid ongoing insolvency proceedings of BYJU’S, Raveendran was said to be looking to sell a part of his stake in Aakash to the company’s largest shareholder, Manipal Education and Medical Group (MEMG).

While the MEMG Group has been increasing its stake in the once crown jewel of the edtech giant, BYJU’S has continued to plunge in deeper legal waters. Troubles on the regulatory front, investor allegations of fraud, lenders seeking their dues, government scrutiny on its state of affairs, court cases in the US, pending salaries of employees are among the host of reasons which have put BYJU’S on the edge of bankruptcy.

Aakash has also seen its shares of problems this year. In September, the profitable BYJU’S subsidiary fired about 80 employees as it tried optimising its business. Subsequently, it was reported that the company has implemented a revamped strategy, ‘Aakash 2.0’, to scale its operations, improve efficiency and build hybrid learning centres.