After Reserve Bank of India ordered to cap cash withdrawal limit of Sri Guru Raghavendra Sahakara Bank, panic stirred among thousands of Bengaluru bank customers. BJP MP Tejasvi Surya sought to calm the situation assuring that the depositors have nothing to panic about.
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on January 10, imposed severe curbs on cash withdrawal limits of the Bengaluru bank. According to the RBI order, customers can only withdraw up to Rs 35,000 from the balance of any account for the next six months.
'My family also has an account here': BJP MP Tejasvi Surya
Tejasvi Surya, BJP MP Bangalore South constituency, has assured the customers of Sri Guru Raghavendra Sahakara Bank that the government is keen to resolve this issue and will protect the interest of depositors.
He further added, "I have met with many depositors of this bank and to be honest my family also has an account here. I met Finance Minister and a meeting is underway at RBI with depositors and bank authorities."
The BJP MP tweeted assuring the depositors, "I want to assure all depositors of Sri Guru Raghavendra Co-operative Bank to not panic. Hon'ble Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is appraised of matter & is personally monitoring the issue. She has assured Govt will protect interests of depositors. Grateful for her concern."
Tejasvi Surya also attached a statement along with his tweet:
Bank blames 62 dud loans for crisis
Assuring depositors that their money was "100 per cent safe" with the bank, Sri Guru Raghavendra Sahakara Bank Chairman K. Ramakrishna, here on Monday, said 62 loans had locked up Rs 300 crore of deposit.
Your money is 100 per cent safe with Sri Guru Raghavendra Sahakara Bank. It's my responsibility- K Ramakrishna, Chairman, Sri Guru Raghavendra Sahakara Bank
Because of these 62 dud loans, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had restricted the lender from executing business, he said amid shouting by depositors. Ramakrishna said he would meet customers again on January 19 with all the details and numbers.
Depositors demand clarification
Dramatic scenes and pandemonium ruled the auditorium before his arrival. Thousands of bank customers threatened to go en masse to the police station and file a case against Ramakrishna. As he addressed the gathering in Kannada, hundreds of depositors shouted back at him seeking clarifications.
"The bank is saying I can't withdraw more than Rs 35,000. In case of our fixed deposit maturing, we will have to renew it as we can't encash it, " said Nagaraj M, 49, who has been dealing with the bank for the past six years.
At the auditorium, thousands of depositors earlier demanded the bank chairman's presence to clarify the matter. The lender had invited depositors to the auditorium at 6 pm to update them on the bank's status, following an RBI directive restricting the bank from doing business with immediate effect.
"We want the bank's directors here," shouted a depositor from the stage. A handful of policemen were trying to control the crowd and bring order to the assembly. Many elderly and retired persons had arrived to know the fate of their savings. Several women were also present at the meeting.
"It was a good bank with only 0.5 per cent NPAs. Now we can't trust any bank. See what happened with the PMC Bank," said another customer. Shankar Sharma, 38, an employee of a private company, said majority of depositors were senior citizens and retirees. "I don't have an account with the bank, but my mother, uncle, aunt have deposited money in it. I came for them, " said Sharma.
He said many of the bank's 35,000 clientele deposited more than Rs 5 lakh, which had total deposits of Rs 1,600 crore. The bank started operations in 1999.
(With inputs from wires)
