NEW DELHI: Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday lashed out at Congress neta Rahul Gandhi for making “baseless statements” about the state of public sector banks (PSBs), saying the country’s banking sector, particularly state-run banks, has seen a “remarkable turnaround” under PM Narendra Modi.
She was responding to comments by LoP in Lok Sabha on X about state of PSBs, which he alleged had been turned into “private financiers” only for the rich and powerful corporations and were being forced to prioritise profit over people and unable to serve the people effectively.
Rahul also said that with staff shortages and “toxic work environment”, PSBs are expected to reach unachievable targets without being provided a level playing field.
Sitharaman, in a series of posts on X, said, “Didn’t the people who met with the LoP tell him that high concentration of corporate credit and indiscriminate lending during UPA tenure had resulted in significant deterioration in health of PSBs?” She also alleged that PSBs were treated as “ATMs” for their cronies and shady businessmen during the Congress regime.
The FM said since 2014, PSBs have recruited 3.94 lakh employees and as of Oct 2024, 96.6% of officers are in position and 96.7% of subordinate/award staff are in place, showing meagre vacancies which are also being filled.
Responding to Rahul’s charge of “staff shortage” and “toxic work environment”, Sitharaman asked, “Didn’t the people who met with the LoP tell him that recruitment drives and Rozgar Mela initiatives have filled lakhs of vacancies across all central govt depts, including banks and PSBs?”
The FM said that it was actually during UPA era when bank employees were harassed and forced to give loans to cronies through “phone banking” by then Congress-led UPA govt functionaries.
Sitharaman also highlighted that women are excelling as MDs, CEOs and leaders in the sector. The Modi govt’s commitment to women-led development is evident not just in policy but in practice, the FM added.
Rahul had met a delegation of the All India Banking Officers Confederation and took to X to draw the attention of govt on the state of PSBs. “Modi govt must stop using PSBs as an unlimited source of funds for their fraudulent friends. There’s also more to a public sector bank than a dividend cheque to the govt at the end of the year,” he said on X.
