Downfall of a legend
The myth of Icarus, who flew too close to the sun and then crashed, comes to mind when examining the sudden downfall of Rajat Gupta. His arrest, on charges of insider trading, is an ignominious turn in one of the most illustrious careers of a global career. Gupta was not merely the head of a top consulting firm, he represented the new breed of Indian professionals who effortlessly moved beyond the confines of their own environment to straddle the international stage.
He had the ear of heads of state and was comfortable among the movers and shakers of global business. Till just the other day, he was hailed as a visionary and an institution builder. For Indians he stood out as a symbol of the kind of talent this country could produce.
Though establishing guilt is still far away — and Gupta has studiously denied all allegations — the American authorities are confident that they have an ironclad case. Slowly, all those implicated in helping hedge fund manager Raj Rajaratnam to get privileged information are being prosecuted; it was only a matter of time before Gupta too was arrested.
One by one the institutions who craved for him to be on their advisory boards have slowly nudged Gupta out. He is on his own till he clears his name beyond all reasonable doubt. But it will be a pity if his contributions — such as helping set up the prestigious Indian School of Business — and his ideas are now conveniently ignored or forgotten.
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