Min Hee-jin reveals accidentally liking ILLIT’s ‘Kalguksu’ incident amidst ongoing HYBE versus ADOR conflict, leaves internet divided

ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin allegedly liked an Instagram post of ILLIT's "Kalguksu" incident, which made headlines. On May 26, 2024, the Korean online forum TheQoo published a report of a screenshot taken by a NewJeans fan where the netizen asked Min Hee-jin wondering if she clicked the "like" button on the post accidentally. The fan had personally texted the ADOR CEO on her official Instagram handle (@min.hee.jin).

Min Hee-jin sent her a reply stating that she received the particular post of ILLIT from another fan and while clicking on the post, she might have accidentally "liked" the post. She said:

"There were some bunnies who let me know earlier that I liked it by accident. Some fans DM-ed me and sent me a link to verify it. I didn't like it; I must've double-tapped it by accident. Thank you for letting me know." (as translated by pannchoa)

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Min Hee-jin gains attention for her recent Instagram activity involving ILLIT

After the CEO "liked" a brief video of ILLIT members by @1mmimbox, repeating the word "kalguksu" on Instagram, netizens came forward to inspect if the ADOR CEO's statement held any truth in it.

This stemmed from the ongoing feud between Min Hee-jin and HYBE Corporation since April 21, 2024. Meanwhile, BELIFT LAB—home to the rookie girl group ILLIT—filed a lawsuit against Min Hee-jin and accused her of defaming ILLIT.

Besides, there are more than 1.7 million views to date on the Instagram post shared by @1mmimbox, on May 25, 2024. The video clips showcased ILLIT members who submitted their cuisine preferences. All of the participants, except for Yunah, chose the "kalguksu" noodles over the braised galbi.

It is important to mention that both ADOR and BELIFT LAB are two of the other subsidiaries operated under HYBE Corporations. HYBE's ongoing court battle with Min Hee-jin is about her alleged attempt at management overturn, purposefully crashing of HYBE's shares and more.

Meanwhile, she accused ILLIT of plagiarising NewJeans' concepts and themes. NewJeans is a five-member girl group under ADOR that debuted in November 2022.

The ADOR CEO's response to the Instagram user via personal messaging gained attention. Internet was divided as some agreed that it is a common mistake that happens to everyone while others argued that the reason sounds unreal.

Netizens commented on the post shared on TheQoo which had over 500 comments on the report.

Internet was divided over Min Hee-jin's response. (Image via screenshot/TheQoo)

Meanwhile, HYBE, BELIFT LAB, CEO of Pledis Entertainment, Chief Music Producers of BIGHIT MUSIC and Source Music, and Chief Performance Director of HYBE have all filed a petition against Min Hee-jin.

They stated in their petitions that the ongoing conflict caused by the ADOR CEO has been hampering the work atmosphere within the labels under HYBE Corporation and causing distress among employees.

Since the beginning of the dispute, the parent company (HYBE) had obtained several pieces of evidence through an internal audit that points toward the ADOR CEO trying to trade business secrets illegally.

This includes setting up a meeting with Dunamu and Naver to allegedly hijack HYBE shares and cause its downfall and take over ADOR.

Dunamu came forward and reportedly informed the parent organization on the same since they are the third largest shareholder of HYBE and did not want to get involved in the ongoing public feud.

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The Seoul Central District Court plans to render its decision before May 31, 2024, when HYBE called for an emergency shareholders' meeting to oust the ADOR CEO from the position.