Gupta was a member of an executive trio unveiled in October 2019 as the business tried to get back on track after the detention of former CEO Carlos Ghosn. The Indian national swiftly rose to prominence as the company’s COO, dominating quarterly results news conferences, and was mentioned as a potential future CEO.
Nissan’s top executive Ashwani Gupta is leaving the company, the Japanese manufacturer announced on Friday. This unexpected move will resurrect questions about the leadership stability of the company.
However, a source familiar with the situation told AFP that Gupta was leaving before Friday’s statement, citing, among other things, a “rivalry” between him and chief executive Makoto Uchida.
He clearly had the desire to hold the position of leadership. Although he wasn’t coerced out, the source claimed that he knew it wouldn’t be doable.
Nissan stated that Gupta “elected to depart the business in order to pursue various possibilities effective June 27” but did not provide any other information.
The automaker stated that a new executive lineup will be shown on the same day.
Gupta’s abrupt resignation was initially reported by The Financial Times on Thursday. According to the publication, Uchida and Gupta had disagreements because the latter was thought to occasionally go beyond his authority and undermine his employer.
The tabloid also claimed that Gupta had “multiple internal complaints,” but it did not specify the complaints.
Nissan declined to comment further on Thursday, only stating that “outside the control, third parties have been recruited to verify facts and carry on necessary actions.”
Tensions with Renault – Nissan has been dealing with a number of setbacks recently, including Ghosn’s arrest and the ensuing internal unrest, as well as declining sales, the pandemic’s effects, and supply chain interruptions.
It has also had troubled relations with its French alliance partner Renault. Ghosn claims the charges against him were brought to thwart his efforts to foster a better relationship between the two companies.
Nissan and Renault relaunched their problematic 24-year partnership earlier this year after months of laborious discussions and numerous delays.
According to the acceptance, Renault will reduce its ownership in Nissan in exchange for Nissan acquiring an ownership interest of up to 15% in Renault’s upcoming electric car venture, Ampere.
According to the Financial Times, Gupta had long been seen by Renault executives as “one of the greatest impediments in negotiations between the alliance’s partners” since he frequently disagreed with their requests.
They said that Masakazu Toyoda, a second senior director at the company who opposed Nissan owning an interest in Ampere, was also forced to resign.
With Gupta gone, just Uchida is left of the three guys who were selected in 2019 to stabilize the ship following the commotion caused by Ghosn’s arrest.
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Three-in-the-company Jun Seki left his position only a few weeks after being hired.
Having been released on bail in Japan when he exited his home nation and eventually arrived in Lebanon, former car industry tycoon Ghosn was detained in November 2018 amid allegations of financial impropriety.
He continues to be wanted on a global scale and disputes the accusations made against him. He claimed that the reason he left Japan was because he didn’t think he could get a fair trial.
His arrest sparked an internal inquiry that led to the resignation of the CEO at the time, Hiroto Saikawa, due to excessive remuneration.
