Khursheed asks SFIO to hasten prosecution in Satyam case

The Government has asked the investigating agency SFIO to expeditiously initiate prosecution proceedings against the guilty in the Satyam case and put the whole process on the fast track.   

"The SFIO has completed the investigation in the case and the Ministry has asked the SFIO to chalk out a strategy for prosecution in coordination with the CBI," said newly-appointed Minister of State for Corporate Affairs (independent charge) Salman Khursheed after taking charge.

The process of trial by a competent court, he added, is needed to be "put on a fast track so that the guilty can be punished quickly".

The Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) has submitted a 14,000-page report on the Satyam case to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs.

Talking about his priorities, the Minister said he would focus on the Aam Admi (common man) and protect the interests of small investors.

"The Government's focus and our ministry's focus will be on Aam Admi...We will ensure protection and comfort of (the) average investor, particularly small investor, and ensure that nothing goes wrong, in addition to bringing in more transparency for boosting public confidence," he said. Khursheed said the first priority of the ministry would be to reintroduce the Companies Bill, 2008, which was introduced in the Lok Sabha and now stands lapsed.

As regard the corporate governance and corporate social responsibility, Khursheed said the Government is in the process of looking if it can set up some kind of early warning system to prevent corporate failures and scam.

"A number of issues related to the corporate governance framework, role of directors, role of auditors also needs to be examined carefully and necessary corrections are required to be made in the corporate governance framework," he added.

When pointed out that the SFIO has shortage of staff and does not have powers like that of CBI, Khursheed said these issues need to be looked holistically and the ways of making optimal use of the investigation arm.