Karan Bajaj, an Indian entrepreneur known for his work in meditation and the author of a recent book encouraging a simpler lifestyle, is now addressing strong opposition to his company’s practices.

Bajaj, who established the coding education platform WhiteHat Jr, has initiated legal action for defamation against Pradeep Poonia, an engineer who has voiced public concerns regarding the company’s promotional strategies, the standard of its courses, and the suppression of critical feedback. Similarly, on Monday, WhiteHat Jr filed a comparable lawsuit against Aniruddha Malpani, an investor who has shared unfavorable opinions about the business.

The majority of WhiteHat Jr’s clientele, which focuses on children’s education, are located in the United States, and the demand for its personalized classes has increased by almost 90% throughout the current year, as stated by the company.

The legal action against Poonia, where Bajaj (pictured left above) is requesting $2.7 million in compensation, alleges violations of WhiteHat Jr’s trademarks and copyrights, the dissemination of false and damaging information concerning the company and its leader, and unauthorized access to the company’s internal communication platform.

The lawsuit further contends that Poonia publicly released the contact details of WhiteHat Jr staff and made serious claims, including comparing the company’s marketing approaches to “child sexual abuse.”

Legal representatives also assert that Poonia recorded portions of WhiteHat Jr classes, posed questions unrelated to the curriculum with the intention to “humiliate and harass” the instructors, and subsequently shared these recordings online.

“As demonstrated in some of the direct communications between the Plaintiffs’ instructors and the Defendant, the instructors have experienced significant distress and harassment, which is particularly concerning given that the Plaintiffs’ entire teaching staff of 11,000 individuals are women,” the lawsuit details.

“The Defendant’s actions have negatively impacted the Plaintiffs’ business, resulting in a loss of goodwill, reputation, and customer confidence. It is submitted that, as a direct result of the Defendant’s online posts, the Plaintiffs have observed a substantial decrease in the rate of conversion from trial classes to full registrations, which has significantly affected revenue.”

However, the lawsuit itself, containing several spelling and grammatical inaccuracies, also suggests the limited degree to which WhiteHat Jr, which is owned by Byju’s, India’s second most highly valued startup, is receptive to criticism.

Internal communications from a WhiteHat Jr Slack channel, shared by Poonia, indicate that the company has actively employed copyright claims to remove numerous negative comments about the platform in recent months.

The suit also addresses Poonia’s accusation that WhiteHat Jr fabricated a story involving a fictional child featured in one of its advertisements.

An advertisement for WhiteHat Jr previously featured a 12-year-old named “Wolf Gupta,” who was presented as having secured a position at Google. Bajaj’s legal team states in the lawsuit that this child is not a real person. Notably, this was also the central argument Poonia was making in his online posts after extensively researching the supposed success story of WhiteHat Jr.

In the second lawsuit, the startup claims that Malpani’s criticism stems from his investments in competing platforms Bibox Labs, Multibhashi and ConceptOwl. (These platforms do not appear to be direct competitors.) WhiteHat Jr is seeking approximately $1.9 million in damages from Malpani.

“We did not seek legal recourse willingly. Startups require concentrated effort and a clear focus, free from distractions. However, untrue and unethical attacks, including attempts to compromise company servers and defame our female teachers, have significantly impacted our employees and instructors. Media coverage has been skewed by the sensational nature of negative reporting compared to factual accounts,” Bajaj stated in a LinkedIn post on Monday.

“The reality is that WhiteHat Jr experienced rapid global growth because the curriculum was both effective and creatively engaging for children, and our Indian teachers dedicated themselves wholeheartedly to their students. We have encountered challenges during our expansion. Our marketing campaigns were flawed, and we have addressed those issues. Constructive, honest, and fact-based criticism is genuinely valued. Rapid growth is complex. Difficulties are inevitable. We welcome your feedback to continually improve. However, falsehoods and unlawful intrusions harm individuals and do not contribute to progress.”

Numerous education companies in India have reported substantial growth in recent months due to ongoing school closures related to the coronavirus pandemic. Byju’s is currently the most valuable edtech company globally, backed by prominent investors like Bond.

Despite the general reluctance of most Indian consumers to pay for online services—as evidenced by Facebook’s large user base in India with limited revenue generation—the education sector is an exception. Indian families continue to invest significantly in their children’s education, hoping to create opportunities for a brighter future.

Further reading: 

Rage against the machine: behind Byju’s swift silencing of dissent (The Ken)

India’s WhiteHat Jr is startup hell (The Morning Context)

WhiteHat Jr and the curious case of disappearing dissent (Forbes India)

Advertising body asks WhiteHat Jr to pull down ads (Forbes India)

The story was updated at 2.30pm IST on Monday to add details about the second lawsuit.