Discussing the new draconian provisions of the Companies Act 2013 over a cup of coffee with my colleagues, we were all wondering whether we are in the right profession considering that the Government is hell bent on imprisoning the Chartered Accountants for the pettiest of offences, when one of the articled trainees very innocently walked up to me and asked (at a rather early hour of the day) whether she could leave for her classes. Glancing at my watch I asked her whether the coaching class guys knew that they were articled trainees and were expected to have some commitments at office. Pat came the reply ‘They have to adjust their schedule as per their availability and timings’. This left me wondering, as I often do, about the accountability of the various service providers we encounter in our day to day life and how they match up in accountability versus the good old chartered accountants. With no serious offence intended to my colleagues and professionals in other spheres, I present herewith a summary;

Fund managers/ Investment advisors

Since the financial services industry earns me my bread and butter, let’s start here first. If the mutual fund you invested in or the stock that you bought based on the valuable advice of your investment advisor performs badly, it is never their fault. The fault is always with the market. It doesn’t value good stocks/ funds…..Really?

Lawyers

You pay an upfront advance fee even before the guy has appeared for you in court. Whether you win or lose it’s not his problem. If you win the case, he will probably take all credit and also ask for an additional fee. If you lose, probably the judge didn’t appreciate the facts of the case or the laws in India are quite silly. It’s never his fault and obviously no accountability. It’s always your neck on the line and never theirs.

Doctors

Any specialist you go to doesn’t feel his worth unless he charges you a four figure consultation fee the first time you see him. Next he will ask you to do tests worth another few thousands and will again charge you for showing him the results. One of the worst bunch of professionals as regards value of someone’s time is concerned. It sometimes seems to me that they take pride in making a patient wait for atleast two hours after the appointed time. Why take an appointment? If you get alright he is great, if you don’t you can only change the doctor and nothing else.

Professors/ Coaching classes/ Schools

The most commoditized of the noble professions. Fees for the entire year are collected upfront and then you are at their mercy. They will call you for a class as per their convenience and their primary objective is ‘to complete the portion’. I don’t think they ever bother whether the students have understood or not. If you get good marks, they will put up your picture on every moving BEST bus in the city taking credit, if you flunk…well… you were not cut-out for it. Again, no accountability!

Telephone service providers/ insurance agents

They will go to any lengths to sell their service to you assuring you how great their service is. Once you buy it, your misery starts. You will not receive bills/ intimations, but you will be expected to pay on time failing which your service will be stopped, penal charges will be levied, cover will be withdrawn and the endless calls and yelling to the call centre will yield no result.

I can go on and on with the list. Compare this to a chartered accountant. Every return has to be filed on time. Every balance sheet must not be true and fair but true and correct. Any errors in the financial statements, any errors in the tax return the first reaction will be not to introspect but to ask….’CA ne kya kiya’. We can keep shouting our lungs out that some of these are the responsibility of the management but to all and sundry that probably holds no meaning. The buck seems to stop at the CAs desk……and the government probably agrees!!