The National Commission for the Protection of Child Rights called BYJU’s CEO, Byju Raveendran, to appear in person before the Commission on Friday for suspected hard selling and mis-selling of its courses to students.
Details about the CEO of BYJU’s has been summoned by the NCPCR over charges of malpractice
The summons comes only days after the child rights agency took notice of a media article alleging that the ed-tech corporation is pushing families into debt and exploiting pupils.
According to Reuters, BYJU’s is facing a slew of accusations on social media platforms and consumer websites from clients who claim they were exploited and tricked, jeopardizing their funds and prospects.
The NCPCR has summoned Byju Raveendran to appear in person after observing that BYJU’s is engaging in fraudulent tactics to entice parents and children to enter into loan-based agreements, so abusing them.
Raveendran will be required to produce “details of all the courses run by BYJU’s for children, the structure of these courses and the fees details, the number of students currently enrolled in each course, the refund policy of BYJU’s, the legal documents regarding the recognition of BYJU’s as a valid ed-tech company and all other relevant documents regarding the claims made in the media report”. He will also be required to explain the disparities in the aforementioned situation.
“The news report also indicates that the edtech platform has received several complaints from parents of children but has done nothing to address them,” the NCPCR letter read.
The NCPCR further cautioned BYJU’s CEO that if he does not comply with the ruling, he will face the penalties of non-attendance.
A BYJU representative verified the news, saying: “The summons was delivered to us yesterday. To address the baseless concerns, we are developing a transparent response based on facts. If necessary, we will clarify our stance before the commission.”
The COVID-19 pandemic was a godsend for Bengaluru-based BYJU’s as schools closed and students flocked to online learning, prompting it to go on a takeover spree of smaller companies and attract large investments from around the world.
However, its popularity began to diminish when children returned to school and the global economic outlook became bleak.
BYJU’s, which was last valued at $22 billion, recorded a loss of Rs 4,564 crore in September for the fiscal year 2021, and revenue declined by 3%.
