The Ministry of Company Affairs has appointed JJ Irani, Director of Tata Steel and Tata Sons, to head the expert group to draft the new Companies Act. Ravi Parthasarthy, vice chairman & MD, Infrastructure Leasing & Finance Services, has been nominated to be a member of the expert group. The other members will include one representative each from the panel forwarded by Confederation of Indian Industries, Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Associated Chambers of Commerce, Lawyers Forum, Punjab Haryana and Delhi Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), Institute of Companies Secretaries of India and Institute of Cost and Works Accountants of India (ICWAI). 

ICWAI will not a full fledged member but will have its nominee as a visitor. The expert group will have a maximum of 11 members and will finalise its recommendations within three months, said a source in the company affairs ministry. The expert group will be free to appoint sub-committees on specific issues to expedite the process of formulating the recommendations. The work on tabulation of feedback of the recommendations received on the draft Companies Bill is currently in progress along with work on draft rules. The government is working on simplifying the provisions of the law. 

The concept paper issued by the ministry has generated wide ranging response. The topic of independent directors has been widely debated. At the macro level the concern is that simplification should not be at the risk of diluting the substantive provisions.