PhonePe CEO clarifies comments on Karnataka job quota bill, offers apology

PhonePe Founder and CEO Sameer Nigam on Sunday clarified his personal comment regarding Karnataka's draft job reservation bill, saying it was never his intention to insult the state or its people.

Social media users in Karnataka had called for a boycott of PhonePe after its CEO criticised the job quota bill last week.

In a statement, Nigam said if his comments hurt anyone’s sentiments in such a way. "I am truly sorry and would like to offer you an unconditional apology".

He further said he has the highest regard for Kannada, and all other Indian languages. "I truly believe that linguistic diversity and rich cultural heritage is a national asset that all Indians should be proud of, and all Indians should be respectful of and celebrate local and cultural norms," said Nigam.

PhonePe was born in Bengaluru, he said. “From Bengaluru, over the past decade, we have expanded across the length and breadth of India and been able to deliver secure and efficient digital payments for over 55 crore Indians,” the CEO stressed. He said that the company is grateful for the supportive business environment that Karnataka’s governments and its local Kannadiga populace have offered.

"Bengaluru’s Indian startups are competing against trillion-dollar giants like Google, Apple, Amazon and Microsoft," he said. To do so, these companies must be able to employ the very best talent available in India purely based on their technology skills and proficiency in fields such as "Coding, Design, Product Management, Data Sciences, Machine Learning, AI and beyond".

Nigam said he wants to help create lakhs of jobs for Bengaluru and Karnataka. "And, I believe with more dialogue and discussion, we can find ways to create more sustainable employment avenues," he added.