AUDITORS MAY GET POWERS TO REFUSE TO SIGN ACCOUNTS

Auditors may get power to refuse signing a company’s account if these are not found to be in proper order. A special group constituted by Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) is veering round to view that the institute should push for statutory backing to such move. The government has asked ICAI to suggest ways to strengthen reporting norms following Satyam. Currently, auditors may only qualify accounts if managements are unwilling to accept the discrepancies they point out. ‘If
the law mandates that the management has to incorporate the effects of qualifications, the situation will be completely different.