Unmindful of the scorching Mumbai sun, which was unusually hot for an April morning, a confident Deepak Parekh walked into Taj President with Justice SP Bharucha in tow.
The five-star deluxe hotel at Cuffe Parade has turned into literal fortress, with gun-trotting cops at vantage points (security at all Mumbai hotels were beefed up after the terrorists’ attack). The hotel’s entrance, unlike any other day, was barricaded and vehicles were permitted only after a thorough check: of its occupants and their intentions.
Taj President was hosting the most important board meetings in the country’s recent corporate history — finalising the bid for the beleaguered Satyam Computer Services.
It was precisely 96 days after Satyam Computer Services Chairman B Ramalinga Raju’s confessed of a financial fraud and resigned, and the government-appointed board was ready with its final decision.
With HDFC Chairman Parekh (now a Satyam board member) and Bharucha (who was appointed to oversee the resurrection process of the fraud-tainted company) arriving at around 8.30 am, the final countdown has just begun.
The duo did not entertain journalists, but walked straight into the board meeting to meet fellow directors, most of them had come in earlier or checked in at the hotel the previous night.
Uneventful the time flowed. The reporters and crew of 10-odd TV channels and newspapers lazing under the cool shades, or sharing snacks and drinks (courtesy Satyam PR agency).
By around 12.30 pm, nearly four hours later, things took a drastic turn. Vineet Nayyar, Vice-Chairman and CEO of Tech Mahindra, stepped out and almost immediately was driven away. Reporters got only glimpse of the blue shirt he was wearing, as the windows were rolled up. He seemed to be a man in a hurry, and there were two answers to the question: Did Tech Mahindra win?
A little later JP Nayak, president (operations and director), L&T, stepped out of the hotel. Nayak in a suit and blue tie, did not convey anything. He wasn’t visibly upset, on the contrary there was a smile on his face, even though it looked like a forced one. Even to a trained eye, L&T Senior Executive Vice-President VK Magapu, who had accompanied Nayak, also did not convey anything. Both were more business-like and were driven away also immediately.
By around 1.00 pm, news started trickling in, it’s Tech Mahindra, a good five hours after the bidding process started at 9.00 am. ‘Mission Accomplished’ was writ large over Kiran Karnik’s face (government appointed chairman of Satyam). He opened the conference by stating that “this is not an arranged press conference… so kindly keep your shoes with you” (a reference to the recent shoe-hurling incident).
Announcing that Veturbay Consultants, a Tech Mahindra subsidiary, has won the deal, Karnik peppered his conversation with “Satyam is being reborn” and “It’s in the final stages of being revived”.
The saga that began with an utter shock and dismal, ended with a happy note. There is a new Satyam, moreover, the country’s place in offshoring and software was intact.
