In the course of a 10-minute interview to NDTV on Tuesday, Pai said the company was in danger of losing its growth momentum. �In the last three years, competition has overtaken us in some areas; we have declined from a unique position (and) have seen conservatism in the corporation.�

Much as Pai acknowledged the contribution of the founders in the Infosys growth over the years, he said the time has come for them to step aside and make way for new talent to sustain its growth over the next five to ten years. He seriously doubted if this was happening in the company, right now.

The problem with Infosys is that its management has tended to be status quo oriented, he said. �If some people have come together to set up a corporation and over a period of time they create tremendous value�they (then) start defending the value. That is the time when you must step aside and let a new generation of people to come, start with that base and go further three to five times,� he said.

He said his disagreement with company mentor N R Narayana Murthy was about the appointment of a CEO.

�I only joined issues with Murthy just because he spoke about technical terms�I have a valid point of view too. When you choose a CEO, choose somebody who should not be experienced. It (the criterion) should be what he is going to do for the next five years, because, life is about tomorrow and not about yesterday. Yesterday�s meal is digested, but tomorrow�s meal is important.�