SFIO probe into Satyam to cover PW-Bangalore, 350 entities

The government today said Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) is probing 325 companies and 25 individuals related to Satyam and family members of its founder Chairman B Ramalinga Raju, in addition to Bangalore office of the auditing firm Price Waterhouse (PW).
    
"The government has extended the investigation (by SFIO) to 350 entities...There are approximately 325 companies and about 20-25 individuals," Corporate Affairs Minister Prem Chand Gupta told reporters here.
     
"They are related to same Satyam and Raju (family) group and SFIO will look into linkages between all these companies and all these individuals," he said.
     
SFIO would also examine the role of individuals and issues concerning diversion of funds, among others, he said, adding the investigation would take time.
    
Gupta further said the government today ordered an investigation by SFIO into PW, the auditors of crisis-hit Satyam Computer Services.
    
Following disclosure of accounting fraud by Satyam founder Raju on January 7, the government had ordered probe into the IT company and also related entities, including Maytas Infra and Maytas Properties.