Uber's ousted CEO calls investor lawsuit unfounded

Uber's ousted chief executive and company founder Travis Kalanick is asking for the dismissal of an investor lawsuit against him, calling it part of a personal attack aimed at sidelining him.

A response Thursday to a lawsuit filed last week by early Uber investor Benchmark Capital said the litigation was part of a "shameful" effort to remove Kalanick from any role at the ridesharing giant.

The Benchmark lawsuit filed in a Delaware court accused Kalanick of fraud, breach of contract and of plotting to manipulate the board of directors to allow him to return as CEO following his resignation in June.

But in his response, Kalanick claimed that Benchmark "began secretly planning an effort to oust him" and "executed its plan at the most shameful of times" following the death of his mother in a May accident.

The filing said members of Benchmark earlier this year "handed Kalanick a draft resignation letter, and told him he had hours to sign it, or else Benchmark would start a public campaign against him." Ultimately, he relented, "given his emotional state," according to the filing.

Kalanick argued that the lawsuit -- which has brought to light strains and infighting at the world's most valuable venture-backed startup -- should be dismissed and that the dispute should be settled in arbitration.