Govt orders Serious Fraud Office to probe Satyam scam

RELATED NEWS ‘AP govt sold land at low prices to Satyam, Maytas’ Post Satyam, analysts see Infy, TCS, Wipro gaining Govt supercedes Satyam management Raju says I was alone, govt thinks otherwise Raju confesses: Why and how of the Satyam con Mahindra Satyam BSE | NSE 10/02/12 Are Mutual Funds betting on Mahindra Satyam?

PC Gupta, Minister of Corporate Affairs, said the government has ordered a probe by the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) to look into the Satyam scam and look for irregularities and any other related anomaly. "The SFIO has been given three months to submit its report."

 

Gupta said the government had received a report from the Registrar of Companies (RoC) but did not share details of the reports. He stated that regulations would now be reviewed in the wake of the Satyam scam.

 

On the issue of new board members for the troubled IT company, Gupta said, "We are working out the names of more board members of Satyam and will inform the names soon."

 

Here is a transcript of Abhijit Neogy's comments on CNBC-TV18. Also watch the accompanying video.

 

The Registrar of Companies is mandated for probing offence purely under Company Law. But the SFIO mandate is broader. It can handle probes by multiple agencies and at multiple levels. So, this is a step forward. It is only when frauds are deemed to be that serious and it involves various facets.

 

For example, if there is a capital markets angle here, there is a company offence angle here then such frauds are referred to the SFIO. Prima facie, we are told the RoC report contains a damning indictment of the way Satyam was run, and the government thought it fit enough to refer it to the SFIO.

 

Just to run you through the key features of the RoC reports. It is no rocket science to know that the accounts have been falsified. That is something that the RoC has highlighted. The other issue is that the returns filed before the RoC are also not authentic and that is something the RoC has raised.

 

Also, the RoC has questioned the role of the directors, including all the independent directors of the erstwhile Satyam board as well as the top management, which then consisted of people like Ram Mynampati.

 

PC Gupta said, "We have received a report from RoC and based on that SFIO investigation has been ordered. The time given to SFIO is three months."

 

There is more action from the government in Delhi. The PM met with senior cabinet ministers P Chidambaram and PC Gupta, and they will probably be joined by Montek Singh Ahluwalia and Kamal Nath. The brief of this senior cabinet committee is very simple. It is essentially to figure out the extent to which the Satyam controversy has gone, and to figure out political linkages.

 

Also, the government will figure out how to facilitate the assistance. There is not going to be any bailout, as bailouts typically mean you've got to pay money out of the exchequer and that is not going to happen. They are probably going to find ways and means of facilitating a revival of Satyam, because the PM's mandate is very clear: With 50,000 employees and with elections looming, Satyam will not be allowed to fail.

 

Read: Everything about the Satyam scam here