Special court verdict in Satyam case likely on Dec 23

Days after Satyam founder B Ramalinga Raju was convicted in SFIO cases, a special court here is expected to pronounce its verdict on Tuesday in the multi-crore accounting fraud in the erstwhile Satyam Computer Services Limited (SCSL), capping a nearly six-year trial. Satyam's former chairman Raju, along with his brother and Satyam's former MD B Rama Raju, its former chief financial officer Vadlamani Srinivas and former director Ram Mynampati were given six months' jail term and fines on December 8, by a Special Court for Economic Offences in connection with complaints filed by Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO).

The court order was subsequently suspended to enable the accused to file appeals. SFIO, the investigation arm of Union Corporate Affairs Ministry, had filed seven complaints against SCSL and its directors for violations of the Companies Act in the Special Court for Economic Offences here in December 2009.

On October 30, Special judge BVLN Chakravarthi, of the Special Court trying the case, (probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation) pertaining to the multi-crore rupee scam in SCSL, fixed December 23 for pronouncement of the much-awaited judgement.

CBI's special Public Prosecutor K Surender had then said, "The case is posted for judgement on December 23. In all probability, it (verdict) will be delivered on that date, failing which, because of the volume of the case, it might take a few days more if at all." Raju and other accused are scheduled to appear before a local court on Monday in connection with complaints filed by market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).

Apart from Raju, Rama Raju, the other accused in the case are Vadlamani Srinivas, former Pricewaterhouse Coopers auditors Subramani Gopalakrishnan and T Srinivas, Raju's another brother B Suryanarayana Raju, former employees G Ramakrishna, D Venkatpathi Raju and Ch Srisailam, and Satyam's former internal chief auditor V S Prabhakar Gupta.