Infosys rubbishes reports of co-founders' involvement in recent whistleblower allegations

IT software major Infosys on Wednesday strongly condemned what it termed as 'mischievous insinuations' made by anonymous sources against the co-founders and former colleagues suggesting their involvement in the recent whistleblower allegations.

"These speculations are appalling and seem to be aimed at tarnishing the image of some of the most accomplished and respected individuals," said Chairman Nandan Nilekani.

"I have a deep regard for the life-long contribution of all our co-founders. They have built this institution and have served this company selflessly and even today, remain committed to the long-term success of Infosys," he said in regulatory filings at BSE Ltd, National Stock Exchange of India Ltd and New York Stock Exchange.

"As we have previously stated, the audit committee has appointed an external law firm to conduct an independent investigation into the allegations made in the complaints. We will share the outcome of the investigation at the relevant time with all stakeholders," said Nilekani.

Some media reports quoted Nilekani as telling analysts in a conference call that even God cannot change the company's earnings of the company. He said that he felt "insulted with the (whistleblowers) accusations" but does not want to bias the investigation.

On Monday, Infosys said there is no prima facie evidence yet to corroborate any of allegations by the whistleblowers.

On October 21, the company had said it is examining charges made by some unnamed employees who accused Chief Executive Officer Salil Parekh and Chief Financial Officer Nilanjan Roy of following unethical accounting practices to boost revenue and profit for many quarters.

Infosys' audit committee has retained the services of law firm Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas and Company to investigate the matter. Moreover, the audit committee began consultations with independent internal auditors Ernst & Young.

"Given the circumstances at this stage, where there is a complete absence of prima facie evidence and the anonymous complaints are still under investigation, the company is not in a position to determine the concreteness, credibility and materiality of the anonymous complaints," it said.

Infosys is one of India's most respected companies that was set up in 1981 by corporate icons N R Narayana Murthy, Nandan Nilekani and S Gopalakrishnan among others.

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