Zeenews Bureau
New Delhi, Jan 08: Corporate Affairs Minister, Prem
Chand Gupta, today said the government had ordered inspection of accounts of eight Satyam companies.
The Government will take the strictest
possible action in a coordinated manner to deal
with the situation arising from the admission of fraud by the
founder-chairman of Satyam Computer, B Ramalinga Raju, he told reporters.
Noting that the market regulator SEBI and the Registrar
of Companies (RoC) are already on the job, the Minister said,
"as far as the auditors are concerned we have asked ICAI to
take strictest possible action against the erring auditors."
The ICAI will also call for internal documents of the company under FRRB and submit a report to govt in a few days, he said.
"I had a meeting with the senior officials from the
Ministry of Finance, SEBI, the Ministry of Law and Justice and
the Ministry of Information and Technology. We had a joint
meeting and we are taking coordinated action in a very firm
manner and there would be no laxity on anybody's part," he
said.
While a team of SEBI has already reached Hyderabad, the
headquarters of Satyam Computer, the government has asked the
RoC to look into the matters concerning the erring company.
When asked if the Prime Minister's Office has sought
details on the Satyam controversy from the corporate or
finance ministry, Gupta said, "I do not think it is necessary
for me to discuss about that."
However, he added, "as the government we are concerned
...we would be taking a coordinated action and it would be
strictest possible action against the erring company, its
officers and auditors, board members and whoever were involved
in this fraud."
The government, he said, is exploring various options to
deal with the corporate fraud and protect the interest of
investors and stakeholders.
"We are exploring various options... we are in fact more
concerned about investors (and) the stakeholders", he said,
when asked whether the government was proposing to appoint an
independent director on Satyam's board.
Describing the whole episode as "shameful", Gupta had
yesterday said the government would refer the case of
financial bungling by Satyam to Serious Fraud Investigation
Office (SFIO) after verifying the facts.
The controversy began after Satyam Chairman B Ramalinga
Raju admitted that company had overstated earnings and
underestimated liabilities in its account books.
Govt to review provisions of Companies Bill 2008
"After the Satyam case, there is a case for re-looking at
certain provisions of the Companies Bill 2008 to enable the
government to take swift and more effective action in cases of
large scale fraud," Gupta said.
The government is seeking to replace the 52-year-old
Companies Act 1956 with new legislation, a bill for which was
introduced in the Rajya Sabha in October.
The proposed legislation is primarily aimed at updating
corporate laws and reducing state control over the affairs of
companies.
The minister further said that the government will "leave
no stone unturned to punish the guilty...that does not mean
suspecting each and every company".
By and large, Gupta added, the companies are well
regulated in India.
ICAI to serve showcause notice on PwC ICAI will serve a showcause notice on PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) in a week after collecting information from SEBI and Registrar of
Companies, and action against CAs can be expected in 2-3 months if found guilty.
"We have written to SEBI. We are writing to RoC for collecting facts on Satyam. We are likely to issue showcause notice in a week's time," ICAI President Ved Jain said here.
He said the institute would expedite the process this time and would be in a position to take action against CAs, if found guilty.
CAs, found either negligent or party to the fraud, could face a life-time ban on practising, Jain said.
CII removes Raju from key positions
B Ramalinga Raju has been removed from all key positions in the
apex industry body, CII.
"His position in CII falls vacant since he has resigned
from Satyam," a top CII official, who did not wish to be
named, told agencies.
Raju, who was heading CII's committee on corporate social
responsibility, had enjoyed a tall stature in the chamber till
his startling revelations stunned India Inc into "disbelief".
He was among the co-chairs of the prestigious India
Economic Summit organised here by the World Economic Forum in
November last year.
FICCI, where he headed the IT committee last year, is
also of the view that with his resignation from Satyam, a new
representative of the company will replace Raju.
Assocham said that though the chamber would like the
culprits of the Satyam fraud to be brought to book, it would
not debar Raju from attending the meeting of the managing
committee, of which he is a member.