Even God can't change numbers of this company: Infosys Chairman

Asserting that the company operates with the highest integrity, Infosys Chairman Nandan Nilekani on Wednesday said "even God can't change the numbers of this company".

"Infosys has very strong processes, even God can't change the numbers of this company...We have an outstanding finance team people of highest integrity and they are feeling insulted by these allegations ... But I don't want to bias the investigation," Nilekani said at the company's analyst meet in Bengaluru.

He added that he will wait for the investigation report to come in.

Nilekani said it was "business as usual" for the company in spite of the latest "distraction".

Customers are extremely supportive... Customers have faith in Infosys... deal flow continues to be as good as ever, Nilekani said adding that the Board is fully supportive of the management team that is driving the company's strategy execution.

In his opening remarks, Nilekani said the investigation process that is currently going on will allow the company to determine the validity of complaints.

"Should an investigation substantiate the allegations of a complaint, the company promptly undertakes remedial steps and makes disclosures if required. Infosys' response to the recent whistleblower allegations adhered to the company policy and past practices, and complied with all applicable laws and regulations," he said.

He emphasised that contrary to reports, the company had acted responsibly in response to the complaints.

In October, Infosys had informed the stock exchanges of having received anonymous whistleblowers' complaints alleging certain unethical practices by the top management.

Nilekani, at that time, had said the whistleblower complaint dated September 20, as well as an undated complaint had been received by one of the board members on September 30.

In the letter, dated September 20, and signed by 'Ethical Employees', it was alleged that CEO Salil Parikh as well as Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Nilanjan Roy engaged in forced revenue recognition from large contracts not adhering to accounting standards.

The complaints were placed before the audit committee on October 10, and to the company's non-executive board members on October 11, also the day when Infosys announced its second quarter results.

Infosys has roped in an external law firm to conduct an independent investigation into the allegations, and has stated that the outcome of the investigation will be shared with all stakeholders at the relevant time.

The US market regulator SEC has initiated a probe into the matter, while Rosen Law Firm had said it was preparing a class-action suit to recover losses suffered by Infosys investors in the US.

Back home, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) had sought additional information from the company while the National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA) - part of the Corporate Affairs Ministry - as well as the Registrar of Companies, Karnataka, have sought information from Infosys on the matter.