VG Siddhartha's death: FM Nirmala Sitharaman says 'Business failures should not be tabooed', while debating Insolvency Code

Reacting to the death of Cafe Coffee Day founder V G Siddhartha, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said business failures in the country should not be tabooed or looked down upon. Responding to the debate on the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) in Lok Sabha, Sitharaman said: 

"Business failures in this country should not be tabooed, or looked down. On the contrary, we should give an honourable exit or resolution to the problem in letter and spirit of the IBC." 

Lok Sabha MPs slam govt's insolvency law

Jayadev Galla (TDP) said businesses may fail because of economic downturn or business cycle. Galla also said that accountability of banks need to come under scrutiny.

"Signing of personal guarantee (by industrialist to take loan) is leading to taking extreme action like suicide," he asserted.

Pinaki Misra (BJD) referred to the death of the coffee tycoon, saying it is unfortunate that the insolvency law "should continuously continue to grow and expand in our country." He said it does not bode well for the country because "that is not how you reach the USD 5 trillion mark.

VG Siddhartha's Death: CCD Appoints S V Ranganath As Interim Chairman, Here's The Tragic Timeline Of Events

V G Siddhartha's death:

Earlier on Wednesday, Siddhartha's body was found on the banks of Netravati River near Hoige Bazaar in Mangaluru. Siddhartha's last letter to his board was found in which he had emotionally explained about having failed as an entrepreneur and in his goal of creating a profitable business model, though he did also allege harassment by I-T authorities. "I hope someday you will understand, forgive and pardon me," he said, also making references to the recent sale of his Mindtree stake. 

Siddhartha, the son-in-law of former Karnataka Chief Minister SM Krishna, was last seen near the Netravati river in Mangaluru on Monday evening.

After the tragic death of its founder, the Cafe Coffee Day(CCD) board on Wednesday issued a statement to the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) announcing the appointment of S V Ranganath as its interim chairman. It also constituted an executive committee which will decide how to explore opportunities to deleverage i.e 'reduce its debt by sale of assets' the Coffee Day Group.

(With PTI Inputs)