Nilekani to get nil pay as Infosys non-executive chair

Infosys Ltd, India's second largest information technology services firm, today said that newly-appointed non-executive and non-independent chairman Nandan Nilekani will not receive any remuneration.

In a BSE filing, the company said Nilekani's office as director shall be subject to retirement by rotation and the remuneration proposed to be paid to him is nil.

Nilekani, one of the founders of Infosys, was first appointed to the board in 1981 and ceased to be a member on 9 July 2009, Infosys said.

His last drawn remuneration for financial 2010 when he ceased to be a director was Rs34 lakh, it said, adding that Nilekani holds 2,13,83,480 equity shares in the company.

U B Pravin Rao, the interim chief executive of the company, who holds 5,55,520 shares, will get the same salary he was drawing as chief operating officer.

Rao was elevated as interim CEO and managing director after Vishal Sikka quit as CEO on 18 August, alleging a "continuous attack" from the founders and other distractions.

Infosys said Rao will continue to hold the position of chief operating officer, for which he will continue to receive remuneration as approved by the shareholders vide a postal ballot concluded on 31 March 2017.

Rao will not receive any additional compensation for his role as the interim CEO and managing director, it added.

His last drawn remuneration for financial year 2017 was Rs7.8 crore, excluding value of stock options granted of Rs4 crore, Infosys said.

The shareholders had approved an annual remuneration of Rs12.5 crore (comprising annual fixed salary of Rs4.63 crore, annual variable compensation of Rs3.87 crore at 100 per cent payout and performance based stock options of Rs4 crore which would vest over a period of 4 years, it added.

Infosys issued postal ballot notice seeking approval from its shareholders on share buyback and appointment of Nilekani as the non-executive chairman.

Other resolutions that require shareholders' approval include appointment of D Sundaram as an independent director on the board and Rao as the managing director and interim chief executive officer.

E-voting and voting through postal ballot on these resolutions will begin on 8 September and continue till the afternoon of 7 October.