of the board usually have the necessary access and skills to fake the entries in the finance systems? Didn't the finance director / CFO notice that there was a few billion Rupies difference between the annual report and the finance systems?

I am sure that the chairman could have ordered / bribed / forced / cajoled some one (or more) with the required skill(s) etc to make the required entries. But then wouldn't that person also be guilty of the fraud?

The Chairmen and CEO's I have known (admittedly very few) never used PC's or word processors. Note books and journals etc can be locked into a safe in the evening and safes are a lot more difficult to break into than the average corporate network.

There's something fishy about this.

It looks like the third world countries have caught up with the West when it comes to corrupt CEOs.

So I guess 'offshoring' doesn't live up to their claims?

Houston/Enron/Andersen, Hyderabad/Satyam/PWC?

I live in Hyderabad, and I am indirectly affected -- I have close relations and many friends who work for Satyam, though (disclosure) I work for one of their competitors as an (aging) geek.

Today has been a bad day for us, full of anxiety and worry. And fruitless speculation about what tomorrow brings.

But the biggest question I have, is what were PWC doing? Raju says this has been going on for a few years. Have they been sleeping? Can fraud like this be perpetrated without the connivance of the auditors?

I had the same question about the "independent" directors who voted yes last month: I would love the chance to ask any ISB student what he thought of his dean now, who chaired that infamous meeting and voted yes.

Oh and by the way, I don't think even Raju's own mother would believe that "I did not make a rupee/dollar" poppycock. These guys are from the construction business, which -- for most lay people anyway -- ranks as the most corrupt businesses all over India!

@Does the chairman:

AFAIK the CFO's name does not figure in the "list of people declared innocent" in that 5-page letter.

There's something missing to this story. Something like... an arrest perhaps? Or is the corruption in India so widespread that a person can admit to fraud yet not be held accountable?

I was going to say good on him for coming clean, and we could do with a few people like him over here, and then I read Sitaram's post....a bit of an eye opener!

Yes. Apparently Ramling Raju was an alumnus of HBS. As was one Mr. Skilling, I'm given to understand.

This throws a spotlight on Indian companies, tech and non-tech, especially family promoted ones. Watch out for a local version of the SOx act.

Can't wait for the financial malfeasance in China to show up. That will make even the American stuff look like nothing.

Does not surprise me in the slightest. After all we are talking about one of the cultures where they find it really difficult to say NO. Now let's see who else has been riding tigers all along...

"If you buy something required to do a job for them they will haggle for 20% off after the event.

If you take a look at the basic Indian infrastructure then you will notice that the whole country is a recurring broken shithole"

...

If ignorance were bliss, you would to be in a state of perpetual orgasm.

Announcement 1: Will the Satyam Auditors please go immediately to the parade ground. Satyam auditors to the parade ground please.

Announcement 2: Firing squad, your presence, with loaded weapons, is required at the parade ground. Firing squad to the parade ground please.

... And that should include directors at global level.

What's with armchair sociologists berating 'Indian culture' or 'Indian <anything>' ? So a corporate scandal occured, hardly a unique event in any nation. Big deal.

Presumably you blokes were out in force excoriating Jews in general when the Madoff episode occured, to give one example ?

What was PWC doing? They were doing what such groups are actually paid to do --- save money for the client.

Don't confuse auditors with tax/financial consultants.

The audit function has nothing to do with saving money.

And so it begins, now that the UK is cheaper than Ireland and would quite like a few jobs back so that project managers have something to do I expect to see a lot more of this.

And dont blame the Indians, their over here helping to train us.

Phone Conversation:

Hello Ram, its me chawhdry here, I was going to say that Wipro could do the development work that nobody wants, as we in India want to manage the project and maintain our executive positions.

Hey Chawhdry, I have solution, we have some of these low paid English workers in UK they are very hard to make out in terms of accent and generally do not follow process well, but praise Vishnu they are much cheaper than our Indian Techies who are now more expensive than damn Doctors, and we will not have to create any Indian Management positions.

Ram, you genius, make them do the needful!

(Wipro have set up a technical base in Scotland and the North of England as of the end of 2008, so you cant say that nobody seen this coming :).

The project manager is about to prove a few darwin and john smith theories to be true, I for one welcome my new Indian overlords....