Google paid USD 45 million to its former India-born executive accused of sexual misconduct
San Francisco:Tech titan Google agreed to pay its former India-born top executive Amit Singhal a whopping USD 45 million as an exit package when he resigned from the company in 2016 after being accused of sexual harassment, according to a media report.
The previously undisclosed amount was in the separation agreement for Singhal, a senior vice president who ran Google's search operations until early 2016.
The amount was revealed on Monday in a shareholder lawsuit accusing the board of directors of Alphabet, the parent company of Google, of shirking their responsibilities by agreeing to pay executives accused of misconduct instead of firing them for cause, the New York Times reported.
The lawsuit was part of the fallout over how Google has handled sexual harassment cases, it said.
The lawsuit was filed in January in California Superior Court with redactions in the passages referring to board discussions. An amended version was filed on Monday without the redactions.
According to the amended suit, Google agreed to pay Singhal USD 15 million a year for two years and between USD 5 million and USD 15 million in the third year as long as he was not employed by a competitor.
He agreed to take a job at Uber about a year after his departure, then resigned from the ride-hailing company a few weeks later when the sexual harassment claim at Google became public, the report said.
Frank Bottini, an attorney for the shareholders, said the board-approved payments were an "abdication of responsibility".
A Google spokeswoman said Monday that the company had "made many changes to our workplace and taken an increasingly hard line on inappropriate conduct by people in positions of authority".
"There are serious consequences for anyone who behaves inappropriately at Google," she said.
Singhal left Google after an employee said he had groped her at an off-site event. Google investigated the allegation and found that Singhal had been inebriated.
The company also concluded that the employee's account was credible. At the time, Singhal said he wanted to spend more time with his family and focus on his philanthropy, the report said.
Singhal did not respond to a request for comment, it said.
Born in Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh, Singhal received a Bachelor of Engineering degree in computer science from IIT Roorkee. He received an MS degree from University of Minnesota Duluth and was head of Google's core search team for 15 years.
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PM Modi speaks to Iranian president, discusses 'serious' situation in West Asia
New Delhi (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday night spoke to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian over the phone and discussed the "serious situation" in West Asia.
Modi expressed deep concern over the escalation of tensions in the region and the loss of civilian lives as well as damage to civilian infrastructure.
The prime minister told the Iranian President that the safety and security of Indian nationals, along with the need for unhindered transit of goods and energy, remain India's top priorities.
“Had a conversation with Iranian President, Dr Masoud Pezeshkian, to discuss the serious situation in the region. Expressed deep concern over the escalation of tensions and the loss of civilian lives as well as damage to civilian infrastructure,” Modi said in a post on X.
The prime minister also reiterated India's commitment to peace and stability and urged dialogue and diplomacy to end the crisis.
The prime minister had spoken to leaders of several West Asian countries in the last 10 days in the wake of the coordinated offensive launched against Iran by the United States and Israel, in which the Islamic country's Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, was killed last month.
In retaliation, Iran has fired drones and missiles at Israel and US military installations around the Gulf region, including the global business and aviation hubs of Dubai and Doha.
Modi earlier spoke to the leaders of Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Jordan, Israel and Qatar, and expressed concern over the attacks on their countries, and condemned the violation of some nation’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
He also discussed the welfare and security of the Indian community residing in those countries.
Around 1 crore Indians live in the Gulf and West Asia. While about 10,000 Indian citizens live, study and work in Iran, more than 40,000 live in Israel.
