Former Twitter India head leaving firm to start an edtech platform

Manish Maheshwari, the former head of Twitter India who recently moved to San Francisco to work at a different division within the company, is leaving the firm to launch an edtech startup, according to nine people familiar with the matter.

Maheshwari and Twitter didn’t respond to a request for comment two weeks ago. Sources requested anonymity as the details are private.

Maheshwari has engaged with a handful of investors in recent weeks to raise funds for a new Bangalore-headquartered edtech startup that promises to deliver MBA courses in four months, according to some of the investors to whom he has pitched the new startup. Maheshwari’s Bangalore home is registered as the new startup’s office location, according to filings with the local regulator.

The former Twitter India head moved to the U.S. as senior director, Revenue Strategy and Operations with focus on “New Market Entry” in August this year. His departure from India came at a time when he as well as Twitter were facing unprecedented heat from New Delhi in the South Asian market. Maheshwari was personally named in police cases in at least two Indian states — Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh — earlier this year over complaints that Twitter was allegedly hurting sentiments of people in India.