IndiGo co-founders Rahul Bhatia and Rakesh Gangwal in dispute, hire law firms

NEW DELHI: Differences have cropped up between the two promoters and co-founders of India’s most successful and profitable airline IndiGo, sources said on Wednesday, adding to the string of negative news emerging from the aviation sector.
The two promoters, Rahul Bhatia and Rakesh Gangwal, have hired legal firms for dispute resolution, sources said.
Read also: IndiGo scrip drops 6.7%; CEO says 'growth strategy unchanged'
While IndiGo did not offer comments for this story till the time of going to press, it is learnt that the differences between the two stalwarts of Indian aviation are over Bhatia possibly feeling that Gangwal was trying to gain greater control of the airline by bringing his own team as the low-cost carrier (LCC) plans to expand its footprints in the international markets.
Bhatia and Gangwal have hired JSA Law and Khaitan & Co, respectively. The news of the differences between the two comes against the backdrop of the turmoil in Jet Airways, which has temporarily shut operations and hurt flyers in one of the fastest growing aviation markets in the world.
Read also: Four top Jet Airways executives resign in a day as revival hopes dim
Gangwal, a US citizen and non-executive director, is a veteran of the global aviation industry with over 30 years of experience and holds nearly 37% stake in the airline. Bhatia has about 38% stake.
Trouble started when IndiGo planned to expand overseas
Gangwal lived in the US for a decade from 1984 and then joined Air France as EVP (planning and development). From there, he went on to join US Airways Group and US Airways as president and CEO where he remained till November 2001.
In 2003-04, Gangwal and Bhatia — already a hugely successful travel industry player in India — came together to launch IndiGo. The airline had a smooth run till to two to three years-go and the low-cost carrier undertook a massive expansion in the Indian skies, emerging as the number one player in terms of market share.
Read also: Govt to decide on Jet Airways' international flying rights soon
The airline took pride in the fact that its top management team had remained virtually unchanged since the start of operations. But once the Indian skies were conquered and it was time to expand in global markets, the first signs of trouble started.
Gangwal, who has a large network of top-notch aviation professionals overseas, started getting expats to IndiGo with an eye on the LCC’s expansion in foreign markets. That phase saw IndiGo president Aditya Ghosh leave last summer. Ghosh’s departure was quickly followed by the exit of IndiGo’s main commercial and network brain, Sanjay Kumar.
Read also: After Aditya Ghosh, now IndiGo's chief commercial officer Sanjay Kumar also resigns
Now, IndiGo has several expats at top management positions. This January, IndiGo appointed Ronojoy Dutta as CEO. Dutta is an aviation veteran who was with United for 20 years and was an adviser to US Airways during its restructuring. He was also Air Sahara president for two years. Fresh trouble started brewing in IndiGo after the earlier team made way for the expats. For the first time, IndiGo saw employees complaining about the working environment in the company.
Aviation industry source said the Bhatia-Gangwal duo may have taken recourse to hiring law firms for dispute resolution due to these string of incidents that have swept the airline.