Danish brewer Carlsberg has reported removing certain board representatives from its India unit due to the latter’s actions against their joint venture’s interests. The said representatives come from its partner, Nepal-based Khetan Group.

This signifies the deepening of a long-standing dispute that started in 2019 when Carlsberg India board members from Khetan protested to investigate Carlsberg’s alleged non-compliance with trade discounts, advertisement and sales promotion laws. While Carlsberg had denied wrongdoing, it has said that it could not rule out breaches of its policies and code of conduct in the past.
On this issue, Khetan Group’s spokesperson has said there had been disagreements with Carlsberg’s joint venture management.

Khetan has had three members on the board of Carlsberg India, while Carlsberg has seven. Carlsberg has taken action against two board members. It has further said that its JV partner is entitled to nominate replacements for as long as the JV still exists.

Founded in 1847 by JC Jacobsen, Carlsberg India is one of the country’s biggest beer companies, having a market share of about 17%. Headquartered in Copenhagen, the Company’s brands include Tuborg, Somersby cider, Holsten, Neptun, Belgian Grimbergen, Baltika and Fix. The Company employs around 41,000 people in Asia and Europe.