Editorial - February 2009 PDF Print E-mail
Editorial Note
Written by Acarya Santosananda Avadhuta   

Satyam: A harsh truth

The disclosures made by the top management of  Satyam showing irregularities worth Rs 1.5 billion dollars in its balance sheet has not only cast a gloom in the stock market but also hurt the faith of the common public. There is a growing apprehension that the Indian companies manipulate their accounts and financial positions. Even foreign investors are doubtful about the credibility of published accounts of Indian companies.

Such behaviour manifested by the top brass of India Inc. is a natural result of excessive greed, which is inherent in the capitalist form of economy. There clearly appears to be no motivation to subscribe to the higher principles of discipline, integrity and moral conduct, especially when one is handling public money.

It is not possible that only the Chairman / Managing Director of the company were involved and the other officers were oblivious of the extending to a period of over seven years. The Registrar of Companies and the relevant officers of the Ministry of Finance should have taken the statutory auditors of the company to task in the first instance. Their duty was to ensure that the accounts of the company reflected the true and correct position on the date when they completed the audit. They cannot be heard to say that they relied upon the information given to them by the Management. Unless such auditors are brought to book speedily, the very purpose of having statutory auditors would be defeated.

The aforesaid greed has led to the erosion of the faith, belief and trust reposed in such managements by investors in India and abroad. To bring back this faith in the investors is a duty of the Government. The need is also to ensure that the people who have wronged the public are brought to justice with great speed and all actions are taken to redeem the good name of India Inc. both at home and abroad.

The government of India has indeed acted in a coordinated manner with reasonable speed to get Satyam back on the rails but little has been said of the action Government has taken against statutory auditors. We hope investigations by the new board of Directors appointed by the Government to manage the affairs of Satyam will no doubts reveal the criminal conspiracy between the auditors and the management, which led to the worst scandal in the history of Corporate India.

To top it all, in order to ensure that there is no degeneration of ethical values, it is necessary that the business managers are put through rigorous courses in morality, integrity and higher values of life.