Rippling Co-Founder Prasanna Sankar Alleges Police Harassment Amid Divorce Battle
Mumbai, 24th March 2025: Tech entrepreneur Prasanna Sankar, co-founder of the $10 billion HR tech company Rippling, has accused the Chennai Police of harassment and extortion in connection with his ongoing divorce and child custody dispute.
Sankar claims that his estranged wife, Dhivya, falsely accused him of kidnapping their 9-year-old son after he took the child, leading him to flee Tamil Nadu. In a series of allegations, he stated that the Chennai Police detained his friend, Gokul, without an FIR for three days, pressuring him to disclose Sankar’s whereabouts and demanding ₹25 lakh for his release.
“They raided my mother’s house, tracked my phone, my car, and even my UPI transactions,” Sankar alleged. “They even seized a caretaker’s phone over a ₹200 payment—all without proper legal documentation.”
Sankar and Dhivya’s legal battle has a complex history. A U.S. court previously ruled in Sankar’s favor in an international child abduction case, after Dhivya took their son to the U.S. The court ordered her to return the child to India.
As part of their settlement, the couple had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU), under which Sankar agreed to pay Dhivya ₹9 crore and ₹4.3 lakh per month, with both parents sharing 50-50 custody. However, Sankar claims Dhivya violated the agreement by refusing to deposit their son’s passport in a shared locker.
Sankar also faced legal troubles in Singapore, where he was accused of placing a hidden camera in their bedroom and assaulting Dhivya. However, he asserts that he was cleared of all charges.
With his family now having left Tamil Nadu to avoid police action, Sankar plans to file a court petition on Monday to put a stop to what he calls police harassment.
Meanwhile, the case has gained traction online, with many expressing support for Sankar and calling for intervention by senior authorities.
Others have pointed to the broader issue of how relationship disputes can lead to alleged misuse of the legal system.
