The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) conducted searches and seizures at three locations in Bengaluru (two commercial and one residential) in the case of Raveendaran Byju and his firm ‘Think & Learn Private Limited’ under the terms of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA). Byju’s is a prominent online education platform offered by the corporation. Various damning papers and digital material were recovered during the search and seizure operation.
FEMA investigations further found that the business got a foreign direct investment of Rs.28000 Crore (approx.) between 2011 and 2023. Furthermore, during the same time, the business sent about Rs.9754 Crore (approx.) to various foreign jurisdictions in the guise of overseas direct investment.
The corporation has recorded around Rs.944 Crore in advertisement and marketing costs, including amounts transmitted to foreign jurisdictions. Since the fiscal year 2020-21, the firm has not prepared its financial statements and has not had the accounts audited, as required. As a result, the banks are questioning the veracity of the statistics given by the firm.
The inquiry into the site was launched in response to multiple allegations received from various private individuals. Several summonses were sent to the founder and CEO of Byju’s Raveendaran Byju throughout the ED inquiry, but he always remained evasive and never appeared during the probe. More research is being conducted.
