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CS Professional · Compliance Management, Audit and Due Diligence · Values, Ethics and Professional Conduct

CS Meera Iyer is asked by the promoter-director of Kaveri Agro Ltd to certify a compliance statement that she has not fully verified, with the assurance that 'everyone does it this way and nobody will check'. Which approach best reflects the importance of professional values and ethics for a Company Secretary?

She should refuse to certify until she has verified the facts. Ethics and values give a professional's certificate its credibility, and integrity and due diligence cannot be delegated to the promoter or deferred until after signing.

  1. ASign the certificate, since the promoter accepts responsibility for the contents
  2. BSign it now and verify the records after the filing is made
  3. CRefuse to certify until she has verified the facts, because the certificate's value rests on her integrity and diligenceCorrect
  4. DSign it only if the company agrees to pay an additional fee

Explanation

A certificate is trusted because the professional has verified what she attests. Signing unverified statements breaches integrity and due care. Option A is wrong because a member cannot shift her own professional responsibility to the promoter. Option B is wrong because verifying after signing defeats the purpose of certification.

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