India Finance News

Infy probe report soon, new info on Coffee Day’s Siddhartha likely

Two major probe reports which have the possibility of shaking up the corporate world are expected to come out this January.

While the one which was necessitated by the allegations of a whistleblower group against the Infosys CEO and the CFO is likely to come out first, the report on the mysterious death of Coffee Day Enterprises (CDE) founder, VG Siddhartha, may be delayed as the deal involving the sale of the group’s tech park, Global Village Tech Park, has not been completed.

When YES Bank said ‘no’

CDE sources told BusinessLine that the deal to sell Global Village Tech park to Blackstone and real estate major Salarpuria Sattva has not reached fruition yet.

Though the ₹2,800-crore deal was signed in September, it has hit a roadblock since YES Bank, one of the lenders of the group, insisted on settlement of its dues first.

Discussions with the bank is still under way and the deal is expected to be wrapped up soon. Sources also said that the probe report could throw up some new revelations relating to Siddhartha. His body was found on the banks of River Netravati near Mangalore on July 31.

Later, the CDE board hired former CBI official Ashok Kumar Malhotra to investigate the contents of the letter purportedly written by Siddhartha. New Delhi-based Agstya Legal LLP was also roped in to assist Malhotra in the investigation.

In the case of Infosys, sources said that law firm Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas, which was hired by the board to investigate the letters written by two whistleblowers, is expected to come out with its report in early January. There is a possibility that the details of the report might be made public during the announcement of the third-quarter results on January 10.

A whistleblower group had alleged that Infosys CEO Salil Parekh and its CFO Nilanjan Roy had indulged in “unethical practices,” to boost the short-term revenues and profits.

Nilekani’s take on charges

The group claimed that it had e-mails and recordings to substantiate its claims. Another letter alleged that Parekh has been violating his employment contract and operating out of Mumbai, and not Bengaluru.

Defending the CEO and CFO during a recent analyst call, the company’s non-executive chairman and co-founder Nandan Nilekani asserted that the company’s processes were very strong and “not even God could change the reported numbers.”

Source: The Hindu

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