Vodafone Idea CEO Balesh Sharma Steps Down As CEO Citing Personal Reasons; Successor Appointed

Vodafone Idea's Balesh Sharma has stepped down from his post of Chief Executive Officer (CEO) citing personal reasons, the company said in an official statement on Monday.

Sharma was the CEO of Vodafone Idea since the completion of the merger of Vodafone Group and Idea Cellular back in 2018. (Getty Image)

New Delhi: Vodafone Idea's Balesh Sharma has stepped down from his post of Chief Executive Officer (CEO) citing personal reasons, the company said in an official statement on Monday. According to reports, Ravinder Takkar, currently Vodafone Group’s representative in India, has been appointed as Sharma's successor with immediate effect. It is also being said that Sharma would now take up a new role with Vodafone Group, however, no further details on this has been revealed by the company. Vodafone Idea Limited also clarified that it has accepted Sharma's resignation and his new role with the company will be announced in the due course of time. "The Board of Vodafone Idea today announced that it has accepted Balesh Sharma's request for personal reasons to step down as CEO of Vodafone Idea. Balesh will be taking up a new role with Vodafone Group, which will be announced in due course," company's official statement said. Takkar is currently a board member of Vodafone Idea and Indus Towers and has been associated with the Vodafone Group since 1994. Prior to this, Takkar was the CEO of Vodafone Romania for a span of three years and also the CEO of Vodafone Partner Markets in London. Sharma was the CEO of Vodafone Idea since the completion of the merger of Vodafone Group and Idea Cellular back in 2018. Prior to that he was Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Vodafone India. Sharma was one of the significant executives who managed the mergers of the two telecom brands. According to official data, Vodafone Idea has posted significant losses over the past three financial quarters with a continuous dip in its revenue stream post the launch of Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Jio and the tariff war started by the telecom major in September 2016. Post the merger of two of biggest telecom companies in the country, Vodafone Idea Limited has continued to lose customer base almost on a monthly basis. Older operators Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea continued to lose subscribers - 41.75 lakh combined - during June 2019, while rival Reliance Jio added over 82.6 lakh users, according to data released by Trai. Vodafone Idea shed 41.45 lakh subscribers, and Bharti Airtel 29,883 customers during June, while the Jio continued to add customers at a breakneck speed. Ahead of the announcement, shares of Vodafone Idea ended today's trade session at Rs 5.99 a piece, down 7.13 per cent, on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).