An Indian-origin CEO spent ₹3.5 million on a girlfriend and sued her after a breakup. The court rejected the claim

An Indian-origin manager’s lavish spending spree on his ex-girlfriend ended in a court battle in Singapore after he sought to recover S$468,090 (about ₹3.5 million), claims that the money was provided as interest-free loans.

Chander Agarwalmanaging director of an Indian logistics company and managing director of TCI Express, filed a lawsuit against his ex-girlfriend Felicia Lee after their relationship ended.

Agarwal claimed that the expenses incurred during their relationship were loans to be repaid by Lee. Singapore’s High Court dismissed the suit, finding that the payments in question were gifts rather than loans, according to a ruling cited by the BBC and CNN.

The case involved luxury purchases, overseas travel, insurance, education and other personal expenses.

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How the relationship began

According to the court ruling, Agarwal and Lee first met on a flight in 2019. Lee worked as a flight attendant before moving into the roles of insurance agent and medical sales officer.

The two began a romantic relationship in September 2022, which continued until December 2023. Agarwal later suspected Lee of infidelity and the relationship ended.

He filed the lawsuit in March 2024.

The court noted that Agarwal’s spending on Lee began before the two formally became a couple. He bought her a Singapore Airlines Suites Class ticket to New Delhi in August 2022 and later paid for her airfare and accommodation during the European trip.

He also bought luxury items from brands including Hermès, Celine, Dior and Prada.

In September 2022, Agarwal told Lee that she should not be ashamed to use his money if they were together. He also volunteered to budget for her taxi fare, meals and beauty expenses.

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What did ₹3.5 million in receivables coverage?

Agarwal sought to recover about S$206,000 in credit card expenses and about S$129,000 spent on foreign travel.

His claim also included about S$20,000 for Lee’s annual life insurance premiums, along with costs related to the university’s feng shui program and services.

One of the individual claims involved S$16,776 spent on feng shui services for Lee’s home.

Agarwal argued that the expenditure should be considered a loan because he was Indian and did not believe in feng shui. Lee denied asking him to borrow the money.

However, the court found that WhatsApp messages showed that Agarwal himself raised the issue and offered to pay for the feng shui work.

CNN reported that a feng shui master was engaged to “spiritually harmonize” Lee’s apartment.

The court found that the expenses were not established as loans

A central question before the court was whether Agarwal had evidence that the money had been given as loans and that Lee had agreed to repay it.

The judge found he had failed to prove either.

Despite the couple exchanging numerous messages via WhatsApp, the court found no convincing written evidence of a loan arrangement for the disputed payments.

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The judge said Agarwal, who was “in love” with Lee, had “showered her with expensive gifts” during their relationship.

The ruling also noted that Lee sometimes showed what he described as a “spontaneous reluctance to accept” expensive gifts.

The judge questioned why Lee, who he described as having a relatively modest salary compared to Agarwal, repeatedly borrowed large sums to buy luxury items.

It was “unbelievable”, the judge said, that Agarwal failed to identify written evidence supporting his claim that the payments were loans, despite the couple having been together for more than a year and exchanging numerous WhatsApp messages.

A handwritten agreement does not help in the case of a CEO

Agarwal also relied on a handwritten agreement that he said contained signatures supporting his claim. Lee denied signing the document.

Ultimately, the judge found it unsafe to conclude Lee had signed it, saying the document did little to help Agarwal’s case.

The court also took into account a later note signed by Agarwal that he would not ask Lee to return the items he had given her out of his “good will and generosity”.

The judge’s questions change in Agarwal’s position

Another issue was Agarwal’s handling of expenses before and after the relationship began.

The judge criticized his position that money he voluntarily spent before the relationship constituted gifts, while similar expenses after they became a couple should be considered loans.

The judgment described Agarwal’s evidence during the trial as “illogical and often evasive” and said some of his positions defied common sense and were untenable.

The court described Agarwal as a man of “rich means” with expensive taste, noting that Lee was not in the same financial league.

The court dismisses the claim for S$468,090

The judge concluded that Agarwal’s attitude towards money appeared to have changed after the relationship ended.

According to the ruling, he willingly spent large sums of money on Lee while they were together, but later tried to get the money back by characterizing the payments as loans.

The judge said Agarwal, who had been “smitten” with Lee and had been “showered with expensive gifts”, seemed bitter after the break-up and determined to get her money back.

The court rejected his claim, meaning Agarwal cannot recover the S$468,090 he claimed from his ex-girlfriend.

The judge ends the trial with a quote about love and hate

In concluding the judgment, Chief Justice Lee Seiu Kin quoted the English playwright William Congreve: “Heav’n hath no fury like love for hate, nor hell fury like a woman scorned.”

The judge then added: “This case shows that such emotions are not the sole concern of one sex.”