Mumbai-based startup founder withdraws ₹22 LPA job offer over candidate's religious remarks

Mohammed Ahmed Bhati, founder of Mumbai-based recruitment platform Jobbie, shared that he cancelled a job offer worth ₹22 lakh per annum after finding a candidate’s derogatory comments targeting religious communities on LinkedIn.

Startup founder explains why he revoked the offer letter

The startup founder admitted that the candidate had aced the interview process and even went the extra mile to suggest improvements to the company’s platform. However, the offer was withdrawn following a routine background check that revealed “deeply disrespectful” public remarks.

“No matter how talented someone is, respect and basic decency matter to us more. Talent gets you in the door, but values decide if you stay,” Bhati wrote in a widely circulated post.

According to Bhati, the said candidate applied for the job after seeing Jobbie’s viral Reddit post about conducting 450 interviews for over 12,000 applicants.

The person stood out not just for skills but also for a proactive attitude, including building the resume using Jobbie’s tools and suggesting platform tweaks.

“We were ready to extend an offer above our budget. But during the final background check, we found public posts that included remarks which could hurt religious sentiments. That’s not a value we are willing to compromise on,” Bhati explained.

About Jobbie

Jobbie is an all-in-one AI-powered career platform that offers a comprehensive suite of services designed to accelerate job searches. 

The startup founder, Bhati, also posted screenshots of both the offer letter and the rejection note, clarifying the withdrawal of the offer letter

“We came across some recent public posts on LinkedIn that included comments from you which will deeply hurt the religious sentiments of certain communities,” the rejection letter read.

Netizens react

While some individuals lauded Bhati for prioritising values over pure technical competence, others questioned whether withdrawing a job offer over social media comments is justified.

Some blamed the decision as a “cancel culture in hiring”, arguing that firms should focus on performance, not personal opinions.

A user wrote, "Revoking an offer letter for a professional position based on someone's social media activity goes out to show how this cancel culture can actually affect organisation when wrong people get in leadership position. And posting it here isn't virtue signalling either. It simply shows how immature and insecure you are as a leader. Good luck finding good candidates."

Another user commented, "You're trying to assert your power, acting like, ‘I built this platform, so I decide who gets hired based on whether they align with my beliefs or not.’ But I’m sure if someone from another religion did the same against yours, you wouldn’t stay silent, you’d be the first to call it out."

"Only a fresher can understand what was the importance of this position. There is so much to do and learn, education makes a human being grounded, teaches gratitude and keeps him humble. But now I know why the cultural round is important," the third user wrote.

"Everyone with a hate comment, I have a question.I mean, would you be comfortable working with/under a racist/casteist or even a sexist? I know I would not. Qualifications should not be the only parameter to assess an employee. Companies generally have zero tolerance policy against the same. It's better to reject candidates before they are hired and cause severe social and emotional damage to others," a user wrote.

"Great decision, I would say," another user wrote.

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