Priyanka raps govt for PMC Bank account holders' woes

A day after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) put severe curbs, including restrictions on cash withdrawals, on the Punjab and Maharashtra Co-operative (PMC) Bank, Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government's "wrong economic policies" for the people's woes.

"These sobs are of a woman holding an account in the PMC Bank. People are upset because they are unable to withdraw their money from the bank due to a surprise order from the RBI. The fault is with the government economic policies. The fault lies with the top officials. But the common and hardworking people are facing the heat," Priyanka Gandhi said in a tweet.

She also attached a video of a woman standing outside the bank branch in Mumbai, unable to withdraw her money. In the video woman can be seen crying with the bank passbook in her hand.

The RBI on Tuesday put severe curbs on the PMC Bank amid probe into accounting lapses, sparking speculation that the regulator might force a management change through merger.

The RBI also capped cash withdrawals at Rs 1,000 per account for six months, spreading panic among depositors. The PMC Bank has also been barred from making fresh loans and taking deposits.

The restrictions under Section 35A of the Banking Regulation Act are aimed at preventing a run on the bank that could end up endangering the financial system's stability because of a contagion effect. IANS