Karan Bajaj of WhiteHat Jr withdraws case against Pradeep Poonia; lawsuit against Malpani still stands

Karan Bajaj, Founder and CEO, WhiteHat Jr has withdrawn the $2.6-million defamation suit they filed against Pradeep Poonia in November 2020. Poonia, a vocal critic of the company, provided the update and said, “WhiteHatJr withdrew their case before Delhi High Court. This is a win for every one of us. Corporates like WhiteHat Jr and BYJU'S, social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Quora, and YouTube aren't above our freedom of expression. This is a win for every common man. I hope you guys will remember what happened, how it started; how we all together fought back and eventually proved our points.”

He even said, “WhiteHatJr has been systematically trying to shut down criticism. They have created fictional children who earn Rs 20 crore. They have attributed them with false accomplishments, such as TedX talks and Google jobs, and have made baseless claims. My intention is only to expose these false and unethical business practices.”

Taking to LinkedIn, where he most active these days, he thanked Swathi Sukumar, his lawyer for the case. He also took a jab at corporates dissenting freedom of speech. Thus, many social media users have welcomed the withdrawal of the defamation suit.

About the WhiteHat Jr vs Critics Defamation Lawsuits

WhiteHat Jr has been in controversy since its $300 Mn acquisition by edtech giant Byju’s in 2020. After the increasing dissent from ‘whistle-blower’ Pradeep Poonia and Aniruddha Malpani, WhiteHat Jr CEO and founder Karan Bajaj, in November 2020, filed defamation lawsuits for $2.3 Mn against Poonia and $1.9 Mn against angel investor Dr Aniruddha Malpani. In both cases, the company has cited copyright infringement and trademark violations. Further, it has also accused Poonia of hacking into WHJ communications.

Many people on social media supported Pradeep Poonia and have called the bluff on WHJ’s policies. They called the company, fraud and misleading; especially targeting parents of 4+ kids and manipulating them to make them tech-enthusiasts - this is something many people in India are disapproving of. Further, in support of the company, many think this is a tactic by a competitor of WHJ to defame them.

Yet, popular sentiment on social media is that by going to the extension of a defamation suit, the company has shown that they do not take criticism and feedback nicely.

Whitehat Jr vs Aniruddha Malpani

WhiteHat Jr also sued Anirudh Malpani, another staunch critic, doctor and angel investor. The suit was on the grounds - “incessant posting of false and defamatory tweets which are causing severe damage to WhitHat Jr’s reputation and business through waging a systematic attack on WhiteHat Jr over social media.”

The lawsuit, which still has to go to court, said that Malpani had “a bone to pick” with other venture capitalists. But unlike Poonia, Malpani’s tweets are all guesswork and whataboutery. Whitehat Jr has previously alleged that Malpani's motives were maligned, as he is an investor in WHJ competitors.

The story will be updated with comments from the WhiteHat Jr spokesperson.