Price Waterhouse (PW) has finally suspended two of its arrested auditors, S Gopalakrishnan and Srinivas Talluri, who worked on the accounts of Satyam. The company’s ‘assurance leader’ Thomas Mathew has also stepped down in the wake of the current development.

An official communiqué from Price Waterhouse on Tuesday said, “In light of recent allegations, S Gopalakrishnan and Srinivas Talluri, have been suspended of all of their duties and functions as partners of Price Waterhouse, pending completion of the investigations into the Satyam matter. While they are suspended, neither partner will play any part in client matters. They will undertake no activities on behalf of Price Waterhouse and have been advised to cooperate fully with the ongoing inquiries regarding Satyam. As the investigations proceed, PW will continue to evaluate the situation.”

Thomas Mathew, who did not have any direct connection with the Satyam audit, stepped down. Confirming the development, PW’s official spokesman said, “Price Waterhouse’s Thomas Mathew, has announced that he will step down from this role with immediate effect. Mathew had no connection with the audit of Satyam. In light of the present situation, however, he believes it would be appropriate for him to relinquish his management position. Mathew will remain a PW partner.”

The move by PW India to suspend its two auditors was further fuelled by indications that Institute of Chartered Accountants would also come out with its findings on the GTB collapse over the next 7-10 days, indicting GTB's auditor, Price Waterhouse. Former PwC chairman Amal Ganguly, Gopalakrishnan and Partha Ghosh were the three signatories to GTB audit for three years (2001-03).

Meanwhile, the Income-Tax Department is independently probing the Rs 7,800-crore accounting fraud in Satyam with focus on tax deducted at source and benami deals.