Nandan Nilekani To Return To Infosys, Stock Gets Boost 

New Delhi: Nandan Nilekani is all set to make a comeback to Infosys, thus providing some stability to the IT major which is going through turbulence in the wake of Vishal Sikka's resignation as CEO and MD. It is as yet unclear in what role he will be coming in.

However, Nandan Nilekani's return and role in the software giant would be “cleared” in the next 48 hours, according to reports.

The news of Nilekani's return boosted Infosys stock. Shares were up 2.8% to Rs 899.95 at 12.25 pm, indicating that markets were reacting positively to the news. Dipan Mehta, a member of Bombay Stock Exchange, told CNBC-TV18 that the move would be positive for the company.

The Institutional Investor Advisory Services (IiAS) had favoured Nilekani being brought back on Infosys Board as its non-executive chairman. IiAS said the Infosys Board has been "unable to protect its CEO" and to select a successor it must begin by "reinventing itself".

"It must convince Nandan Nilekani to join the Board once again, as its Non-Executive Chairperson," the investor advisory firm had said in its report, while adding that Nilekani should not see this as any other corporate job as Infosys is at the heart of Indian IT and its success will foretell how the sector will position itself for the future.

Nilekani was one of the seven founders that set up Infosys more than three decades ago and served as its CEO between March 2002 to April 2007.

Nilekani left the company in 2009 to head the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), the Aadhaar authority. Nilekani held the role till 2014 before resigning to unsuccessfully contest Lok Sabha elections on a Congress ticket from Bengaluru (South).

Nilekani has yet to comment on the recent strife at the company. The Nilekani family has a 2.29 percent stake in Infosys as per the quarter ended June this year, Moneycontrol.com.

In a shock development last week, CEO Vishal Sikka tendered his resignation to the Board. In his resignation letter, Sikka cited “continuous distractions and disruptions", as the reason for his resignation.

In an email to Infosys employees, Sikka referred to “increasingly personal attacks against him”. “I cannot carry out my job as CEO and continue to create value, while also constantly defending against unrelenting, baseless/malicious and increasingly personal attacks,” Sikka said in the letter which he later shared on his blog.

Chief Operating Officer UB Pravin Rao was made the interim CEO, while Sikka was made the Executive Vice-Chairman.