PhonePe Founder and CEO Sameer Nigam on Sunday, July 21, apologised for his comments regarding Karnataka's draft job reservation bill, saying it was never his intention to insult the state or its people. In a statement, Nigam said that if his comments hurt anyone’s sentiments in any way, "I am truly sorry and would like to offer you an unconditional apology".
Nigam’s apology comes after his initial comments regarding the draft bill, which mandates a substantial portion of jobs in the private sector within the state to be filled by local candidates, sparked a backlash.
On July 17, Nigam posted on X, “I am 46 years old. Never lived in a state for 15+ yrs. My father worked in the Indian Navy. Got posted all over the country. His kids don’t deserve jobs in Karnataka? I build companies. Have created 25000+ jobs across India! My kids don’t deserve jobs in their home city? Shame”
This triggered an #UninstallPhonePe trend on X, with many expressing their displeasure over Nigam’s remarks, following which the PhonePe CEO issued a statement of apology.
Nigam 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.