Satyam chief speaks out over accounting scandal
The accounting scandal that devastated Satyam Computer Services was ‘probably the handiwork of a few individuals, acting in isolation' says the company's new chief executive, Achutuni Sreenivasa Murty
The new chief executive of India’s Satyam Computer Services has said he is
confident the accounting scandal that devastated his company was ‘probably the
handiwork of a few individuals, acting in isolation.’
Achutuni Sreenivasa Murty also stressed ‘the fraud was complex and caught
everyone unaware’, despite being ‘a company audited by one of the Big Four
firms’.
He said: ‘It will be premature to comment on the past causes that led to this
situation. Multiple investigations are under way to unravel the truth and we
should wait to hear from them about the nature, extent and methodology of the
fraud. Keeping in mind that the company must restate accounts for the last
several years, we predict the effort will take quite some time. Painstaking work
on this programme is under way to ensure that it happens quickly, and as
accurately as possible.
‘It is important to remember that all of us have read about such incidents
across developing and developed countries globally. We have to see this as an
exception and not view it as a systemic failure, in India.’
Two partners from Satyam auditors Price Waterhouse in India, Subramani
Gopalakrishnan and Talluri Srinivas, remain in custody after being arrested in
connection with the Satyam scandal.