Aakash Educational Services sends second legal notice to EY India over alleged conflict of interest
Aakash Educational Services Ltd (AESL), the Bengaluru-based coaching chain, has issued a second legal notice to EY India, accusing the consultancy firm and several of its partners and employees of conflict of interest and professional misconduct.
The latest notice alleges that EY, despite being deeply involved in AESL’s financial operations since 2021, simultaneously acted as the exclusive financial advisor and official result validator to AESL’s direct competitor, Allen Career Institute.
Filed through senior advocate C.V. Nagesh, the notice calls EY’s dual engagement an “unethical conflict of interest” and seeks a probe into the firm’s conduct. AESL’s legal head, Sanjay Garg, said the company is also examining the possibility of initiating civil and criminal proceedings against EY.
The notice specifically names EY partners and employees, including Shailendra Ajmera, Ajay Shah, Riad Joseph, Dinkar Venkatasubramanian, Pulkit Gupta, Lokesh Gupta, Rahul Agarwal, and Renu Kochar. Garg also highlighted previous charges of misconduct against some of these individuals, calling for higher-level scrutiny of EY’s practices.
Aakash claims that despite repeated email requests on April 12, May 6, and May 17, EY failed to share documents and communications related to key transactions, suggesting “concealment of critical information.”
In response, an EY India spokesperson denied the allegations, stating, “We refute all allegations. We treat matters of client confidentiality and conflict with utmost seriousness. Therefore, we cannot comment further on this matter.”
This notice follows an earlier legal action by Aakash in May, where it accused EY of advising both BYJU’S and Aakash despite their adversarial relationship. The dispute has since escalated to the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), where Aakash sought to have EY added as a respondent in a case against BYJU’S.
The ongoing conflict comes amid a broader battle over the control of Aakash Educational Services. BYJU’S acquired AESL in 2021 but has since faced insolvency proceedings and governance disputes. The majority stake in AESL is now held by Manipal Group’s Ranjan Pai, who acquired BYJU’S debt and invested around $300 million into the company.
The NCLT has since ordered a status quo on AESL’s shareholding as litigation continues.