Life on the top rung of the corporate ladder has its share of irony. Take Sanjay Kapoor’s case. In December 2012, Kapoor, who was Bharti Airtel’s India and South Asia CEO at the time, won the prestigious telecom person of the year award at the Telecom Leadership Forum in New Delhi. A month later, the company announced Kapoor was quitting. An official statement records Bharti group founder Sunil Mittal crediting Kapoor with growing the mobile operator’s customer base to 200 million and developing its DTH business and footprint in Asia. “Sanjay has had an enviable performance track record, strategic disposition and business acumen and is an inspirational leader,” adds Mittal.