No confirmation for non-existing 13,000 staff of Satyam: Govt

The government on Tuesday, said it does not have any confirmation on alleged non-existence of 13,000 employees in the fraud-hit Satyam Computer or on diversion of their salaries to family accounts of its disgraced B Ramalinga Raju, founder of the IT company.

"There is no confirmation available with this ministry, as on date, as to the non-existence of 13,000 staff in Satyam Computer Services and the diversion of salaries of such numbers of staff to the family accounts of the promoters of Satyam," Corporate Affairs minister Prem Chand Gupta said in a reply to a question "whether it is a fact that promoters of Satyam Computer diverted salaries of 13,000 non-existent Satyam staff to his (Raju's) family accounts".

In his written reply, Gupta said the ministry has ordered SFIO investigation in the IT company and subsidiaries held and
promoted by Raju or his family.

In reply to another question, Gupta ruled out the possibility of probing the working of other IT companies in wake of Satyam scam, saying the case was an aberration and it "does not represent a breakdown of regulatory oversight".

He added that the country's growth story has not been put at risk due to the incidents in Satyam.