India, July 25 -- Zoho co-founder and former CEO Sridhar Vembu on Saturday issued a fresh statement after facing criticism over his remarks expressing "sadness" at Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation. Many social media users accused Vembu of defending the Narendra Modi government to protect Zoho's business interests in India.

Without naming any individual or group, Vembu asserted that his views were independent and said he would not be influenced by criticism or threats. In his latest post, he sought to reinforce that claim by highlighting Zoho's business model, its revenue sources and his interactions with governments.

Addressing the criticism, Vembu said that around 90% of Zoho's revenue comes from outside India,...