Bengaluru bank chairman says depositors money safe

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SME Times News Bureau | 13 Jan, 2020
At a public meeting here of thousands of worried bank customers, Sri Guru Raghavendra Sahakara Bank Chairman K. Ramakrishna on Monday said that depositors' money with the bank is "one hundred per cent safe".

"Your money is 100 per cent safe with Sri Guru Raghavendra Sahakara Bank. It is my responsibility," Ramakrishna said at Sri Guru Narasimha Kalyanamandira auditorium where thousands of depositors had assembled to seek clarifications on the fate of their deposits.

Dramatic scenes and pandemonium ruled the gathering earlier before his arrival when thousands of the bank customers threatened to go en masse to the police station and file a case against Ramakrishna.

The depositors made this threat after hearing that Ramakrishna could not appear before them as he had undergone a heart operation.

As Ramakrishna spoke to the gathering in Kannada, hundreds of depositors shouted back at him seeking clarifications.

"The bank is saying that I cannot withdraw more than Rs 35,000. In case our fixed deposit matures, we have to renew it as we cannot encash it, " said Nagaraj M, 49, a six-year-old account holder with the bank.

At the auditorium, thousands of depositors earlier demanded the presence of bank chairman to come and clarify on the situation.

Pandemonium prevailed earlier at the location with no senior bank employee available to reassure customers.

The bank invited the depositors to assemble at the auditorium at 6 p.m. on Monday to update them on the status, following a Reserve Bank of India (RBI) directive restricting the bank from doing business with immediate effect.

"We want the directors of the bank here," shouted a depositor from the stage, addressing fellow depositors.

A handful of policemen were trying to control the crowd and bring order to the assembly.

Many elderly and retired persons arrived at the meeting to know the fate of their savings.

"Sri Guru Raghavendra Sahakara Bank was a good bank with only 0.5 per cent non-performing assets. Nowadays days we cannot trust any bank. See what happened with the PMC Bank," lamented another customer.