After Choudhary was denied bail by a Rajasthan court, More bankers Expressed concern over the arrest of the senior banker. The Supreme Court has already dismissed this FIR.
“I don’t know the facts of the case, but based on what I’ve read, we really need a criminal justice system that protects the real actions taken by bankers to recover their money,” said the veteran banker shining box, saying that there must be a method by which that action is to be preserved.
Terming the arrest as an unfortunate incident, Union Bank MD and CEO Rajkiran Rai said the authorities should understand the banker’s point of view before taking such drastic action.
“It disturbs us that a former SBI chairman has been arrested for a decision which does not come at the level of the chairman,” Rai said.
Former Punjab National Bank chief and IBA secretary Sunil Mehta said in an interview with CNBC that the action will play a negative role on the morale of bankers as banks will have to take many such decisions.
Mehta said that every decision regarding disposal of NPAs has a due process which is documented. He believes that Choudhury’s joining the board of the ARC would also have followed a due process.
The Alchemist ARC has described the arrest as ‘bizarre’ and said the Supreme Court had earlier quashed an FIR aimed at stalling the sale of hotel property.
A new government rule, aimed at protecting public sector officials and bankers from law enforcement redundancies, has hit headlines after arrests that have rattled bankers, especially state-run lenders.
This rule states that prior permission is required by the police before taking action against PSU officers.
(with inputs from TOI)