Gaurav Bhatia resigns from Sotheby's India MD a month after #MeToo claims

New Delhi: Gaurav Bhatia has resigned as Sotheby's India MD, nearly a month after he went on a "leave of absence" following allegations of sexual misconduct, the auction house said on Saturday.

Bhatia, who was the South Asia operations head and the "driving force" behind "Boundless: India", Sotheby's maiden auction in the country, put in his papers on December 20, 2018.

"Sotheby's Managing Director of India, Gaurav Bhatia, resigned on December 20th, 2018 after two years with the company, during which time he launched the inaugural Mumbai auction. We appreciate and thank him for his service," the auction house said in a statement.

Bhatia, in a statement, said he had decided to "move on" after two successful years with the auction house.

"After two enriching years and the stellar opportunity to launch Sotheby's inaugural auction in Mumbai, I have decided to move on. It has been a pleasure working with the great team we have built, and I will enjoy watching them continue to build Sotheby's future in India. I wish them the very best," he said.

According to the anonymous allegations against Bhatia that surfaced on social media, he touched the victims inappropriately and forcibly tried to kiss them.

Bhatia was among the big names that were called out in the #MeToo movement in the Indian art world, besides leading artists like Jatin Das, Riyas Komu and most recently Subodh Gupta.