Speak Asia's Chief Operating Officer, Tarak Bajpai, has gone into hiding after being denied anticipatory bail. His disappearance follows his discharge from Jupiter Hospital in Mumbai, where he had remained for months, reportedly to avoid questioning by Indian authorities investigating the alleged pyramid scheme.

Bajpai initially served as the public face for Speak Asia after its Global CEO, Harendar Kaur, and Indian CEO, Manoj Kumar, fled overseas. He publicly stated the company was "bound to win," even as authorities sought their executives. But Bajpai soon claimed a medical emergency and retreated to a hospital.

This sudden need for hospital care seemed suspicious for someone positioned to lead the company to victory. For months, Bajpai stayed in Jupiter Hospital under doctor's orders. Speak Asia's lawyers appeared to use the alleged medical emergency as a tactic to keep Bajpai out of reach of Indian authorities.

They employed a similar strategy when website operator Rajiv Mehrotra was arrested. Individuals with crucial information for the Economic Offenses Wing (EOW) or Criminal Investigation Department (CID) either travel to Dubai or claim medical issues, then hide in hospital recovery rooms to evade questioning.

All medical procedures have a recovery period. Bajpai's time was up. After his discharge, the court denied his anticipatory bail request. Faced with the immediate prospect of EOW or CID custody for the criminal investigations into Speak Asia, Bajpai vanished.

Speak Asia claims it has nothing to conceal. Its CEOs are hiding abroad, and its COO is now on the run in India. This reality suggests otherwise. Bajpai's decision to go into hiding indicates he possesses vital information relevant to the criminal investigations against the company.

Speak Asia has not released any official statement regarding Bajpai's disappearance, likely wary of negative publicity. The CID and EOW accuse Speak Asia of having no corporate clients for its surveys. They also claim the company created over 800 fraudulent accounts to start the pyramid scheme.

Speak Asia also lied to the Supreme Court about its business model. The company submitted written and verbal explanations of a business model it never actually used. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), EOW, and CID will confront Speak Asia in court on November 8th.