1. Rajat Gupta
The Kolkata born Gupta was one of the most respected global business icons coming out of India. A graduate of the prestigious Harvard Business School, Gupta had held key positions in Goldman Sachs and McKinsey. In March 2011, Gupta was accused of sharing confidential information with Raj Rajaratnam, head of a hedge fund. In October 2012, Gupta was sentenced to two years in jail for securities fraud. Gupta’s dramatic fall has not only saddened his numerous admirers but also sullied the image of the Indian business community.
2. Bob Diamond
US born former CEO of British bank Barclays Plc was among the ‘World’s 50 people who matter’ list of New Statesman in 2010. In 2011, he was on the Bloomberg Markets ‘50 Most Influential’ list. But Diamond, known for high-risk investments, was always a polarising figure. Lord Peter Mendelson, UK’s business secretary, called him the “unacceptable face of banking”, thanks to his high salary and arrogance. In 2012 nothing was left to doubt when Diamond was found to have been manipulating the Libor (London Inter-Bank Lending Rate), with a view to making profits and, at other times, making the bank look more secure during the financial crisis.
3. VK Singh
According to one set of army records, India’s recently retired army chief was born in 1950. The government used this to judge his seniority and promote him to the positions of vice chief and chief of army. However, once he became the chief, Singh took the national government to the Supreme Court, claiming 1951 as his birth year. If his claim was accepted, Singh would have got nine more months in office. But the military hero had to eat humble pie when the SC ruled against him.
4. David Howell Petraeus
Check out our Festive offers upto Rs.1000/- off website prices on subscriptions + Gift card worth Rs 500/- from Eatbetterco.com. Click here to know more.
(This story appears in the 11 January, 2013 issue of Forbes India. To visit our Archives, click here.)
Where in the list is Vikram Pandit. Cos it was really unprofessional the way citi ousted him out of company
on Dec 22, 2012