As the depositors of Punjab and Maharashtra Co-operative Bank remain very worried about their money locked in the bank, today PMC Bank assured that every effort will be taken to safeguard the interests of depositors and other stakeholders of the bank.
On Wednesday, the RBI appointed administrator of bank J B Bhoria met the top brass of Reserve Bank of India including Shaktikanta Das. After the meeting, a statement issued by Bhoria said, “It was assured that the bank will make all efforts to safeguard the interests of depositors and other stakeholders.” The assurance comes after two depositors of the bank died of heart attack and a third person committed suicide after they were unable to withdraw their money deposited with PMC Bank.
The statement also informed that the bank is in the process of recasting its balance sheet to present a “true and fair picture” of the financial position of the bank. The bank’s management is accused of hiding the massive amounts of loan given to HDIL which were not repaid. The due amounts of HDIL was not reflected in NPA records of the bank, thereby presenting a false picture of its financial position.
The statement further added, “It was informed that the bank would expedite the processes of assessment of the realisability of the securities available with the bank and the forensic audit presently underway”.
At present, the depositors of the bank can withdraw a maximum amount of ₹40,000 from their accounts. Initially the limit was set at ₹1,000, which was gradually increased to ₹10,000, ₹25,000 and ₹40,000.
A statement issued by the bank on 14th October said that after the limit was raised to ₹40,000, about 77% of the depositors of the bank will be able to withdraw their entire account balance.
“The financial position of the bank has been substantially impaired due to fraud perpetrated on it by certain persons. As soon as the matter came to the notice of Reserve Bank of India, action was taken in appointing an Administrator and ensuring that the bank’s available resources are protected and not misused or diverted,” the statement on 14th had said.
Union minister Nitin Gadkari also today assured that the money of the depositors are fully protected. Talking to NDTV during election campaigning in Haryana, Gadkari said that no account holder will lose their money deposited with the bank. Two days ago, home minister Amit Shah had also said that 80% of PMC customers will get money back. He said that as per the Depositor Insurance Scheme Act, depositors with less than one lakh deposit will get their money, so, about 80 per cent will get back their money back. He expects the procedures to be completed in a month or two.
Real estate firm HDIL allegedly accounted for 70 per cent of the bank’s Rs 9,000 crore loans. According to the Mumbai Police’s Economic Offences Wing, HDIL’s loans turned into non-performing assets (NPA), but the bank management shielded this huge exposure from the RBI’s scrutiny.
The EOW has arrested two promoters of HDIL and two top officials of PMC bank, while ED is also investigating the case.
