Coforge has confirmed that an internal audit found former Chairman O.P. Bhatt suppressed board evaluation reports. Following the disclosure, Bhatt resigned effective September 8, 2026, and the company appointed an interim Chairperson. While the company stated that financial operations are unaffected, the stock faced an 8.7% decline on September 9 due to governance uncertainty.
Coforge has disclosed that an internal audit uncovered governance lapses involving the firm's former Chairman, O.P. Bhatt. The audit found that board evaluation reports, which contained negative performance ratings for the Chairman, were suppressed and not shared with the full board of directors. These documents were reportedly restricted to access by O.P. Bhatt and the Chair of the Nomination and Remuneration Committee, D.K. Singh, effectively bypassing standard corporate transparency requirements.
Following these findings, O.P. Bhatt resigned from his position as Chairman and Independent Director, effective September 8, 2026. In response to the leadership change, the company has appointed Vivek Sharma as the interim Chairperson to serve until January 31, 2027.
The disclosure of these internal governance findings affected investor sentiment, with Coforge shares declining by approximately 8.7% on September 9, 2026. The company has moved to reassure stakeholders by clarifying that the governance issue is isolated specifically to the board evaluation process. Management has emphasized that the company's financial statements, accounting policies, and revenue growth guidance remain unaffected by this board-level incident.
The internal audit, conducted by KPMG, highlighted a failure to maintain a transparent flow of information regarding board assessments. For investors, the primary concern involves the stability of the board and the effectiveness of internal oversight mechanisms. While the firm has indicated that day-to-day operations and financials are secure, the incident has introduced a period of governance uncertainty. Investors may continue to monitor the company’s updates regarding the ongoing governance review and the steps taken by the board to restore transparency in its internal reporting processes.