INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Independent company directors, many of whom are sterling achievers in their respective professions, seem to have developed cold feet about
attending formal classroom sessions and clearing qualifying exams to continue in their roles.
About 170 independent directors of NSE-listed
companies have resigned in last two months as the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) deadline for registration process and passing an
online selfassessment test nears
for all independent directors to register themselves and also appear for a proficiency test thereafter
I am a chartered accountant qualified in January 1990 and I have a 30-year experience
independent director, Jenburkt Pharmaceuticals, wrote in her resignation letter.
According to data collated by nseinfobase.com, out of 168
independent directors who quit the boards of NSE-listed firms in the past two months, about 70 have resigned citing personal reasons or
pre-occupations, while nine did not state any reason
About 55 have retired or their terms expired.
This resignation trend is expected to continue in the near term, said experts
months from the commencement of the Companies Fifth Amendment Rules, 2019 on 1 December, 2019, should apply online to the Indian Institute
of Corporate Affairs (IICA) for inclusion of their name in the data bank
Also, they will have to pass an online proficiency self-assessment test conducted by the IICA within a period of one year from the date of
inclusion of their name in the data bank.
Pranav Haldea, MD, Prime Database Group, also said that the risk-reward for being an independent
director is getting skewed with new regulations and recent court rulings holding them personally liable for wrongdoing in the company
applicable to an independent director who has served for a period of not less than ten years as on the date of inclusion of his name in the
databank as director or key managerial personnel in a listed public company or an unlisted public company having a paid-up share capital of
Rs 10 crore.
The resignations may also have to do with the provisions in the Companies Act, 2013, and Securities and Exchange Board of
