Satyam board meets to discuss buyout offers

New Delhi: Satyam Computer Services Ltd's new board meets on Wednesday to consider the buyout offers made to the company.

Though Satyam has received about six to seven buyout proposals from both foreign and domestic players, sources say that the company is keen to deal with a local entity.

The board will also discuss the Rs 600-700 crore short-term funding requirements, to be provided by three public sector banks.

Meanwhile, banks have given in-principle nod to Satyam, to provide short-term loans for meeting salary, working capital, payment of arrears to vendors, provident fund dues, TDS and rentals charges.

Sources also say that Satyam plans to mortgage its land bank worth between Rs 1,500-1m700 crore to secure the loan.

In another significant development, the Supreme Court on Tuesday granted the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) the permission to interrogate Satyam founder and former chairman Ramalinga Raju and his brother Rama Raju.

The interrogation will be carried out by SEBI General Manager A Sunil Kumar and two other members on February 4, 5 and 6 to get the truth behind India's biggest corporate fraud.

The three-member SEBI team will interrogate Rajus at Chanchalguda Jail in Hyderabad.

Raju brothers so far managed to avoid facing SEBI, thanks to the Andhra Pradesh Police CID, which played the spoilsport by arresting them even before SEBI's investigation began.

Ramalinga Raju had on January 7 resigned as the chairman of Satyam board after admitting to Rs 7,800-crore fraud in the IT company.