India’s fourth largest software export company, Satyam Computer Services suffered yet another blow with resignation of three more independent directors on its Board in the midst of rumor that the company’s founder chairman Ramalinga Raju may quit over Maytas deal disaster.

The company’s independent directors, M Rammohan Rao, who is Dean of Indian School of Business, Vinod Dham, a US-based technocrat widely regarded as “Father of Pentium” and Krishna G Palepu, professor of business administration at Harvard Business School, resigned from the nine-member Board.

It may be here recalled that another independent director Mangalam Srinivasan, an US-based academician, had quit last week as Satyam faced a crisis of confidence following its aborted deal to acquire Maytas Properties and Maytas Infra, owned by Ramalinga Raju’s sons, for $1.6 billion.

The developments come ahead of the rescheduled Board meeting to discuss a share buyback proposal to restore investor confidence.

Earlier, the Board meeting, which was to be originally held on Monday (29th December), has been postponed to January 10.

Meanwhile, the NYSE-listed company revealed that its promoters had pledged their entire equity that lenders may be selling now.

It is learnt that the Board meeting would discuss the changes in management, possible shake-out in promoters group and measures to improve corporate governance policies.

A statement released by the company said, “Some lenders may exercise or may have exercised their option to liquidate shares at their discretion to cover margin calls."

Ramalinga Raju holds 8.61 per cent stake in the company. Ever since the abandoned Maytas deal, the Hyderabad-headquartered company has been in the news for all wrong reasons.

The World Bank has already barred Satyam Computers for contracts for a period of eight years for providing “improper benefits” to the bank staff and for failing to “maintain documentation to support fees charges for its sub-contractors.”

The World Bank’s ban came as a double jinx for the company which was battling an ugly fallout of Maytas embarrassment.