US Court Holds Byju Raveendran In Contempt For Non-Compliance

Update | July 9, 17:20 

In a statement, Paris-based law firm Lazareff Le Bars EURL, which is representing Byju Raveendran and Divya Gokulnath, said that the duo is actively participating in the Delaware Court proceedings initiated by Glas Trust, which is a consortium of BYJU’S US-based lenders. 

Byju denies all the allegations made against him during these proceedings, the statement said, adding that he disputes the jurisdiction of that court to determine the claims made against him.

Talking about the contempt, the statement said that the civil contempt order concerns requests for information, which has already been presented in Indian courts.

“Byju is aware of the order for civil contempt issued yesterday after a hearing held on June 30, 2025 attended by his recently engaged legal counsel. He will address the order in due course and reserves all rights. I wish to make clear that this order relates only to discovery requested by the opposing parties. Byju contests the jurisdiction of the court over him and reserves all rights,” Lazareff Le Bars EURL’s senior litigation advisor J Michael McNutt said.

Original | July 9, 12:20 

The US Bankruptcy Court in Delaware has reportedly held embattled edtech startup BYJU’S founder Byju Raveendran in civil contempt for failing to appear before the court and submit evidence on time.

The court found that Raveendran did not comply with its earlier orders on limited expedited discovery, ET reported, citing a copy of the order.

As per US legal terminology, discovery refers to a process where the parties are required to share information and evidence related to the case with each other. 

“I have seen a lot, but I have not seen strategic and patterned failure to provide meaningful, substantive responses to very basic and cogent questions that have gone on for more than a year,” said the judge.

Raveendran has been ordered to pay $10,000 for each day he remains in contempt of the court’s orders. 

Inc42 has sought Byju Raveendran’s comments on the development. The story will be updated on receiving a response. 

In March this year, the Delaware court had ruled in favour of the lenders of BYJU’S in connection with a case involving alleged fraudulent transfer of $533 Mn out of the $1.2 Bn term loan B (TLB) extended to the troubled edtech startup. 

Following this, BYJU’S Alpha, the US-based subsidiary of BYJU’S which was taken over by the lenders, sued Raveendran, his wife and cofounder Divya Gokulnath and advisor Anita Kishore for allegedly misappropriating the $533 Mn.

BYJU’S Crumbled Empire

The edtech startup, once valued at $22 Bn, is mired in a number of legal cases in the US as well as India. While its US lenders are demanding $1.2 Bn, the company is undergoing insolvency proceedings in India.

Last month, US-based Tynker and Epic!, once owned by BYJU’S, were sold by the company’s group of lenders. 

A few weeks back, BYJU’s current resolution professional Shailendra Ajmera also filed a lawsuit against Raveendran, his brother Riju Ravindran and his wife Gokulnath for allegedly transferring the company assets.

In May, Raveendran and Gokulnath appeared on a podcast with news agency ANI and accused certain entities of orchestrating a targeted campaign of intimidation and pressure tactics against their inner circle.