ICAI Holds CA Guilty of Professional Misconduct for Accepting Audit Without Prior Communication

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has taken disciplinary action against a Chartered Accountant (CA) Ketan Ganpatbhai Barevadia (Respondent), in conclusion to the complaint filed against him by CA Parmar Haresh Kumar Jivanlal (Complainant).

The complainant claimed that he was serving as a tax auditor and statutory auditor of a firm, namely Jas Fuels LLP, for the assessment year 2020-21; however, the respondent took over without even communicating with the complainant firm in writing. Additionally, the respondent did not obtain any No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the complaint firm before taking up the role. This indicates a clear contravention of the provisions of Item (8) of Part I of the First Schedule to the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949.

The ICAI Board of Discipline heard the case on July 11, 2025. In a written statement dated June 14, 2022, the respondent accepted the offence committed by him. Since the respondent has clearly and suo moto admitted the allegations imposed on him, the board held the Chartered Accountant (CA) guilty for professional misconduct under Item (8) of Part-I of the First Schedule to the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949.