“L’affaire Satyam” (Dec 19) makes it clear that independent directors have failed to get crooked promoters to go straight. At the end of the day, when promoters get to choose who their independent directors are, it is foolish to expect anything else to happen. It is time we junked this idea and looked for other structural solutions. It is a pity that mutual funds and other large investors don’t play an activist role in the manner they do internationally. It is up to India’s leading management schools, and not just the government, to come up with some structural solutions. The comments of the minister in charge of the company affairs ministry, to say that the government has no plan to do anything, is unfortunate as it signals that managements can get away with anything.
Sanjay Singh, Gurgaon
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