Ram Mynampati got more salary than Raju, directors!

A prime prospect for probe by regulators and authorities investigating the Satyam fraud, acting-CEO Ram Mynampati appears to be the IT company's most valued asset and drew a salary more than that of founder Ramalinga Raju and all the directors put together.

At the same time, its independent directors, many of whom have quit Satyam board after the Maytas fiasco on December 16, got at least Rs 1 lakh a month as commission and sitting fees.

Mynampati, who is now being questioned by the team of market regulator SEBI, got a total package of over Rs 3.5 crore (Rs 35 million) during the year ended March 2008, while founder and Chairman had to contend with just about one fifth.

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A perusal of company documents reveals all the directors, except Mynampati, got a total of Rs 2.6 crore (Rs 26 million) as salary, commissions, sitting fees, professional fees and other receivables.

What is surprising is the difference between the package of Mynampati and all the others put together is about Rs 1 crore (Rs 10 million), almost the same that the second best package that was given to independent Satyam director Krisha G Palepu.

After Mynampati and Palepu, the package for Ramalinga Raju totals Rs 60.4 lakh, followed by his brother Rama Raju at Rs 44.07 lakh. The company paid a total of Rs 1.56 crores to its seven non-executive directors.

Other than V P Rama Rao, who was on the Satyam Board for just about a month, independent directors got between Rs 12 lakh to Rs 13.2 lakh a year. Harvard Business School professor Palepu bucked the trend and got Rs 91.91 lakh for 2007-08, which includes a professional fees of Rs 79.51 lakh.