Centre trying to wrest control of IIMs: Murthy

Explaining why he thought the ministry was targeting the autonomy of the IIMs, Narayanmurthy said when fees are being slashed by almost 80 per cent, there has to be a consensus among all the stakeholders before implementing the decision. ‘‘You have to make a proper analysis with the concerned groups and people, and then you implement it,’’ he said. Even during the book release, Narayanmurthy harped on the issue of going ahead with reforms only after achieving consensus.

He felt that when such vital decisions are taken, the ‘‘due process’’ had to be followed. He explained that by due process, he meant discussions with all the parties involved and a proper analysis of the policy decision being planned.

On whether IIM-Ahmedabad would become a party to the ongoing case being argued in the Supreme Court, Narayanmurthy said that the IIM-A society was meeting later this week and a decision would be taken only then.

The Infosys chief felt that there could be many ways of dealing with the problem raised by the drastic fee reduction. He said there could be a variable fee structure — different fees for students coming from different economic backgrounds.

He argued that IIM-Ahmedabad had been created by stalwarts and ‘‘people with vision’’, mentioning the names of Indira Gandhi and Vikram Sarabhai. He said that the academic environment at the institute was ‘‘world-class’’.

Reiterating that he had met Joshi before and felt he had been ‘‘misled’’, he hoped Joshi would change his mind in due course.