Investor and Pinstorm Technologies’ founder Mahesh Murthy, against whom Zilingo’s co-founder Ankiti Bose had filed a defamation suit, said he can’t be “bullied” and is ready for a legal battle, if one crops up. In an interview to FE, Murthy said: “The lawsuit has not been admitted, so there is nothing to reply”.
“But if and when it ever is, we will reply to it with force. We will also actively pursue suing them in Singapore where they are hiding now. Further, we will encourage the financial crime authorities of the governments of both Singapore and India to open investigations into this case. We will not be kowtowed into silence…” he added.
According to Murthy, his opinion piece that was published in Outlook Business magazine on March 1, 2023, referred to an “unnamed lady” in the fashion business who committed malpractice. There are at least 35 female founders of fashion businesses that Sequoia has backed, and this could refer to any one of them. Hence, there is no locus standi in the defamation suit.
“Is she saying she’s the one, or is she saying she’s not the one? If this lady is saying that the piece refers to her, and the only identifier in the piece is malpractice, then she agrees she has committed malpractice, so there’s no defamation. If the lady is saying that’s not her, and that’s what I am saying as well, then there’s no defamation. The lady can’t make two opposite claims at the same time, unless all she is engaging in is cheap publicity,” Murthy added.
“The second question is to the financial crime authorities of Singapore and India. News of this lady’s financial shenanigans over the past year has hurt reputations of both countries. Yet she continues to operate in Singapore and India with seeming impunity. Could you please investigate the matter to get to the bottom of it?”