Chennai court rejects Stayzilla founder Yogendra Vasupal’s bail plea

Despite the industry rallying behind Stayzilla Founder Yogendra Vasupal and urging the government to take appropriate action, Vasupal’s bail plea has been rejected.

After nearly 10 days in custody, a special metropolitan magistrate court for Central Crime Branch-CBCID cases in Chennai rejected Vasupal’s bail plea on Thursday. The Magistrate granted the Central Crime Branch a day’s custody of Vasupal.

On March 14, Vasupal was arrested after advertising firm Jig Saw solutions’ owner Aditya CS filed a case against him for non-payment of dues to the tune of Rs 1.7 crore.

Vasupal claimed in his bail plea that he was merely an employee of the parent company Insara Technologies and that investors based in Mumbai control and manage the company

According to a report in the Economic Times, Aditya CS filed an intervening application against Vasupal's bail plea, contending that Vasupal and CFO Sachit Singhi, were responsible for managing the affairs of the company.

Further submission was made that the dispute with Jig Saw was only a civil dispute.

On February 24, Stayzilla suspended operations claiming that it will restructure itself and reboot operations. Following this, Aditya claimed that the company has not paid him his dues since January 2016 and filed a case against Vasupal and Singh. Vasupal was arrested on March 14 but had also put out a blog saying he was being harassed by his landlord and by Jig Saw Solutions. Voodoo dolls were sent to the CFO's house.

The startup founder community and industry bodies have been speaking out in support of Vasupal, claiming that his arrest, and the way the matter has been dealt with, will prove to be a deterrence to any aspiring entrepreneur. They had urged the Home Minister and relevant authorities to ensure justice is served and the hearing of his bail plea is expedited.