The resignation of Infosys CFO MD Ranganath within three years of his predecessor Rajiv Bansal putting in his papers has caught the IT industry by surprise.

The Infosys board announced on Saturday that the resignation of Ranganath, a veteran, has been accepted. The board put on record its appreciation of his contribution towards the growth and success of Infosys.

“During his long stint in the company, I have seen him in a wide spectrum of leadership roles and in each of them he has delivered results with distinction.

“With Ranga as CFO, the company has, in the last three crucial years, delivered a strong and resilient financial performance on multiple fronts, implemented an efficient capital allocation policy, and earned the respect of all stakeholders through enhanced value creation,” said Infosys Chairman Nandan Nilekani. Industry sources pointed out that it was quite unusual for a CFO to quit before the board could find a replacement for him.

While the board has said that it will start the search for a person to replace him immediately, clearly it was caught unawares by the development, the sources said.

Sources said colleagues at Infosys expected Ranganath to get a seat on the board as a reward for successfully managing the crisis, along with top executives, when NR Narayana Murthy and others had raised issues about the way the acquisitions of Panaya and Skava were handled.

Murthy had put out a media statement within hours of Ranganath quitting saying he was an outstanding executive.

According to multiple sources BusinessLine spoke to, his colleagues had expected an announcement during the recent AGM about Ranganath’s elevation to the board.

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