ISB panel reviews Subramanian's role
ISB's executive board has formed a committee to review the role of Subramanian, a professor of finance at the business school. This comes after the government cut short his term as India's executive director at IMF.
The Indian School of Business (ISB) is reviewing Krishnamurthy Subramanian's role as professor, two people aware of the matter said, after the government ended his term at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) six months ahead of time.
The executive board of ISB referred the matter to a review committee to decide if Subramanian will continue as professor of finance at the Hyderabad-based business school, two people aware of the matter said. Subramanian is on leave from ISB until November 2025.
Responding to a query, ISB said it is committed to the integrity of its staff and faculty, and is taking the situation seriously. "In line with our established process, a committee has been formed, and is currently ascertaining the facts," ISB said in an email.
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Subramanian did not respond to a request for comment.
The committee will deliberate and come to a decision, which will be conveyed to Subramanian, who has the opportunity to oppose it if he is dissatisfied. Once the report is submitted, he will have another chance to appeal its decision to the board of ISB if he wishes.
Subramanian, a former chief economic advisor to the government, joined as India's nominee executive director to the IMF on 1 November, 2022. The Indian Express reported on 4 May that the Centre withdrew him from the multilateral agency on 30 April, without specifying a reason.
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On 6 May, The Economic Times reported that Union Bank of India had purchased nearly 200,000 copies of Subramanian's recent book India@100 at a cost of ₹7.5 crore, a decision which led to the suspension of a general manager in December. In a stock exchange disclosure, Union Bank admitted it had made lapses in the book purchase, adding that news of the purchase had no material impact on the bank.
A guest lecturer at ISB, who did not wish to be named, said the matter was referred to the committee as the school did not want to be caught on the wrong foot by not taking action. “It is sort of a preemptive move."
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ISB has faced a similar issue earlier. Its dean Rammohan Rao was executive director at Satyam Computer Ltd when a governance scandal blew up at the Hyderabad-based software company. Rao stepped down as dean, stating his concern and preoccupation with the evolving situation at Satyam was impacting his role at the business school.
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