IndiGo promoters' spat out in open; Gangwal alleges 'Bhatia governance lapses'

New Delhi: Differences between the promoters of the country's largest airline IndiGo came into public on Tuesday with Rakesh Gangwal alleging serious governance lapses by co-founder Rahul Bhatia who had earlier termed his demands as unreasonable.

With the issues brewing for nearly a year, Gangwal has sought markets regulator Sebi's intervention to address the problems.

In a filing to the stock exchanges, InterGlobe Aviation, the parent form of IndiGo, said its board of directors has received a letter from Gangwal and Sebi has also sought a response on the letter.

The markets regulator has been probing the matter since reports surfaced about differences between the promoters in May, sources said.

"Sebi has in the meantime asked the company to give its response to this letter by July 19, 2019, with which the company will comply," the filing said.

Alleging that the company has "started veering off" from the core principles and values of governance, Gangwal has said that even a "paan ki dukaan" (betel shop) would have managed matters with more grace.

Flagging concerns about certain questionable Related Party Transactions (RPTs), Gangwal said the shareholders' agreement provides his long-time friend Bhatia unusual controlling rights over IndiGo.

"Beyond just questionable Related Party Transactions, various fundamental governance norms and laws are not being adhered to and this is inevitably going to lead to unfortunate outcomes, unless effective measures are taken today," the letter said.

Gangwal and his affiliates have around 37 per cent stake in InterGlobe Aviation while Bhatia and his affiliates (IGE Group) have about

38 per cent.