M/s TP & Co., a firm of Chartered Accountants, has been conducting audit of KSR Ltd. since last 4 years. KSR Ltd. has diversified their business…

In the given situation, the senior member of the audit team handed over the standard audit programme of earlier years to the audit assistants and instructed them to follow the same. The assistant to keep an open mind as follows: To start with, an auditor having regard to the nature, size and composition of the business and the dependability of the internal control and the given scope of work, should frame a programme which should aim at providing for a minimum essential work which may be termed as a standard programme.As experience is gained by actually carrying out the work, the programme may be altered to take care of situations which were left out originally but are found relevant for the particular concern.Similarly, if any work originally provided for proves beyond doubt to be unnecessary or irrelevant, it may be dropped.The assistant engaged in the job should be encouraged to keep an open mind beyond the programme given to him. He should be instructed to note and report significant matters coming to his notice, to his seniors or to the partners or proprietor of the firm engaged for doing the audit. Thus, the attitude of assistants of TP & Co. is not justified. They should keep an open mind and go beyond the programme to take care of newer areas of the business of KSR Ltd. into which the Company has diversified.