FIR against Bhavish Aggarwal, others after Ola employee dies by suicide; company seeks relief from Karnataka HC

Ola Electric Mobility founder Bhavish Aggarwal and other top officials were arrested by the Bengaluru Police after an employee of the company died by suicide, accusing them of harassment, officials said on Monday.

The deceased, 38-year-old K Aravind, was working as a Homologation Engineer with Ola Electric in Koramangla since 2022.

Ola Electric made a statement following the news of the FIR and said that it has challenged the same case in the Karnataka High Court.

What did the FIR say?

According to the Bengaluru police, Aravind’s brother Ashwin Kannan in his statement claimed that the Ola technician attempted suicide at his flat in Chikkalasandra on September 28. Upon this discovery, Aravind was immediately taken to Maharaja Agrasen Hospital but later died due to his injuries despite medical attention.

A 28-page handwritten note was found in Aravind’s room. In the note, he accused his superiors of mental harassment and non-payment of salaries and allowances. This allegedly led to the Ola employee dying by suicide by consuming poison, according to the suicide note.

Referring to the alleged suicide note, Aravind’s brother complained that Homologation Engineering Chairman Subrat Kumar Das, Ola Electric founder Bhavish Aggarwal and other company officials had subjected Aarvind to “constant workplace harassment and caused him serious distress by withholding his salary and dues”.

He also stated in the complaint that some money was paid on September 30, two days after Aravind’s death. ₹17.46 lakhs were transferred to his bank account via NEFT. The family described the transaction as “suspicious” and questioned company representatives who allegedly made “unclear statements.” The family also claimed that the representatives were experiencing internal problems.

Based on the complaint, cops registered an FIR under Sections 108 (abetment of suicide) and 3(5) (common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita against Subrat Kumar Das, Bhavish Aggarwal and others at Subramanyapura police station on October 6.

Ola released a statement

Ola said in a statement that Aravind never filed a complaint of harassment during his three-year tenure at Ola Electric.

“We are deeply saddened by the unfortunate death of our colleague Aravind and our thoughts are with his family at this difficult time. Aravind had been with Ola Electric for over three and a half years and was based at our headquarters in Bangalore.”

During his tenure, Aravind never raised any complaints or grievances regarding his job or any harassment. “His role also did not include any direct interaction with the company’s senior management, including the organiser.”

The company also said it was facilitating full and final payment into Aravind’s account to provide “immediate support” to his family and that it was “committed to maintaining a safe, respectful and supportive workplace for all employees.”

Ola Electric goes to Karnataka HC

Ola Electric, in its statement, also said that it has approached the Karnataka High Court to challenge the FIR.

“We challenged the registration of FIR before the Hon’ble Karnataka High Court and protective orders were issued in favor of Ola Electric and its officials,” he said.

Police said further investigation into the matter is ongoing.