The study group of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India has proposed a complete ban on any brand building activity by qualified chartered accountants by making it mandatory for them to obtain certificate of practice with its attendant restrictions irrespective of the nature of work they did.
The proposal, currently being considered by the central council of ICAI, would also prevent Indian accounting firms comprising CAs from performing consulting activities like advising on stocks or market analysis under their own name.
Business Standard has a copy of the proposals. Business Standard had sent an e-mail on the issues of firm names and COP to Jayant Gokhale, chairman of the study group imposing restrictions, and senior CA Manoj Phadnis, seeking their views on the matter. Gokhale refused to respond.
Manoj Phadnis of the firm Fadnis & Gupte said in a reply sent by e-mail on Friday September 12, "I regret that it will not be appropriate for me to respond to your queries at the moment as the same is under the consideration of the Central Council. I am forwarding your mail to the president of the ICAI who is the appropriate person to respond to such queries."
Though Phadnis marked a copy of his mail to the president of ICAI, and Business Standard also sent a reminder to ICAI, the institute maintained silence on the issues.
Services rendered by CAs can broadly be categorised into two heads, one being the "attest" function performed relating to accounts, and the other being non-exclusive advisory or service functions relating to stocks, consulting et cetera.
In the latter, CAs work with other professions and compete with them. The restrictions would place CAs at a disadvantage when competing against professionals like engineers or MBAs who can advertise and work under their own name.
The study group proposal runs against the vision statement released by ICAI in its 50th year celebrations in 1999, when it presented a document to Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee promising to permit CAs to advertise by the year 2003.
ICAI said then that to enhance the image of the profession, it would push for marketing of the profession nationally and internationally by developing an advertisement code by 2003.
Senior CAs like K P Sengupta, a past president of the eastern regional council of ICAI, said the study group move would be disastrous.
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