Former BharatPe CEO Ashneer Grover on Tuesday responded to a defamation case filed against him over his remarks on Indore’s top rank in the Centre’s cleanliness survey. “Sorry. Not Sorry!” the entrepreneur wrote in a long post on X (formerly Twitter).
“Sorry to Indore. You’ve got great people and city. But politicians everywhere have got no chill ! Unnecessary politics being made out of a statement made in jest in a playful conversation on Bhopal vs Indore where the audience had fun – no offence was meant,” Grover said.
The businessman also said that he doesn’t care about an FIR registered against him. “Not Sorry to any politician. Ever. No one. Any party. FIR kar lo. Case kar lo. Koi farak nahi padta.”
“I am not a push over – won’t be bullied. Don’t make issue where there is none. It might be election year – but people are smart. Indori people – super smart. I’ll come to Indore when I wish, as many times I wish – and am confident of Indori mehmaan nawazi,” he further wrote.
Ashneer Grover asserted that his favorite remains “Bhopal” among the two cities. “And yes on Bhopal vs Indore – my favourite remains Bhopal. It would be dishonest of me to put Bhopal lower when I feel it’s not only MP’s, but India’s best city,” he added.
The remarks came after a non-cognisable offence information report (NCR) was registered on Monday against BharatPe co-founder Ashneer Grover following a video showed him commenting on Indore’s top rank in the Centre’s cleanliness survey and purportedly claiming it had been “bought”.
Indore city of Madhya Pradesh has remained on top in the Centre’s Swachh Sarvekshan for six consecutive years.
“See, there is a concept – playing to the gallery, that is, wherever you go, praise it saying I have never seen such a nice city. Now the problem with me is that for three-four years I have heard that Indore is the cleanest city…you have bought the survey. It’s a simple thing,” Grover was heard addressing the event.
However, he immediately clarified that he was not saying there was filth in Indore, and that he meant several construction works are going on in the city.
An NCR was registered against Grover under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 499 (defamation) and section 500 (punishment for defamation) on the complaint received from the Indore Municipal Corporation.
Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.
Updated: 12 Sep 2023, 11:42 AM IST
