10 years after Satyam, independent directors more than just a ticking box

Going by the provisions of the new company law, the responsibility and accountability equation for independent directors has seen a major change

The 2009-financial fraud at Satyam had put the spotlight on the role of independent directors in the company’s board like never before. The Satyam board had several marquee names as independent directors, including the ‘father of Pentium’ chip Vinod K Dham, the then dean of Indian School of Business M Rammohan Rao, U S Raju, a former director of IIT Delhi, Krishna Palepu, a professor at Harvard Business School.

Cut to the present, the action of independent directors continues to come under scrutiny whenever a major fraud is unearthed, or a corporate governance issue raises its head, in the company they