RBI restrictions on New India Co-op Bank: 'My husband is paralysed – what will I do in an emergency?' Depositor shares ordeal

Customers of New India Co-operative Bank are in a state of shock and panic after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) closed its operations in an overnight order on Thursday

Customers of New India Co-operative Bank are in a state of shock and panic after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) closed its operations in an overnight order on Thursday. On Friday morning, scores of depositors rushed to several branches of the bank across Mumbai to access their accounts, where the respective managers informed them that they cannot withdraw their money until the central bank’s further directive. 

mid-day.com spoke to some of the aggrieved customers of the bank outside the Santacruz (East) branch. Depositors, mostly from the middle and lower-income groups, revealed their heart-wrenching ordeal, as they were left completely blindsided by the sudden action taken against the bank. From taking care of ailing family members to paying the bills of school-going kids, customers are now worried about the future of their families, as for many, this was the only bank where they had deposited their salaries and life savings. The angry depositors are demanding their money back and questioned if RBI will take care of their expenses for as long as the bank’s operations are stopped. 

In a harrowing tale, a woman who works as a domestic help, said that she has a paralysed husband at home, even as all her life-savings have been deposited in the bank.    

"I have a paralysed husband at home. What if there is an emergency? How will I manage the expenses? I had deposited around Rs 5-6 lakh after working as a domestic help for years," she revealed.

See pics: Customers in distress as RBI imposes severe restrictions on New India Co-operative Bank

Another anguished customers said that there is absolutely no clarity on what happens next.

“I had deposited Rs 5 lakh. Last evening, I got to know that something had happened in the bank. I came here immediately but the bank was shut and there was no one was present. In the morning, I came spoke to the manager. He told me that there was some issue and the operations will resume when things resolve. However, there’s no clarity. I also got a message from the RBI saying that there is a problem with the account and the operations will commence once the issue is fixed,” he said. 

'Bank issued loans beyond capacity, now has no money to repay us'

According to one of the customers, the branch manager gave them a paper stating the RBI guidelines but did not provide anymore information.

"I asked the manager what was going on, and if public money is stuck, what’s the outcome? If the RBI has issued guidelines, we should know what is going on here. I told the manager that the public will keep standing till they get an answer. These are people's hard-earned savings. A statement given by the manager saud that the bank's liquidation process has started because it gave loans beyond its limit. So our money is stuck as the bank doesn’t have the funds to return the money to the public. The RBI hasn’t closed the bank but only some operations, such as the locker operations, are allowed, according to the statement. But I feel the manager is lying. We cannot trust the statement. If RBI has given you a time frame [on resolving the issue], what’s the bank's response to it? People need to know, and for that the bank needs to release a public notice. The employees here are ordinary citizens and not billionaires. The bank needs to clarify how much time they need: two months, three months, or four months. We will be at ease if we know what’s going on. People are standing outside since morning, no transactions are happening, everything is locked. There is visible panic. People are upset because they don’t know what’s going on, and they are anxious about whether they will get their hard-earned money back," he said.

Another depositor slammed the bank for rolling out loans beyond its capacity, owing to which the liquidation process has taken place. 

“I was able to operate my account from Google Pay last night. Had I known then, I would have taken my money out. We had even visited the bank yesterday but we were not informed anything. I have been a customer for so many years,” she said, adding, “They offer loans when there is no money in the bank. They are stealing the money of the poor," she said.

The angry depositors had a heated confrontation with the bank officials. 

“Why didn't you tell customers about your bank’s situation? The public are suffering. If the bank’s operations are stopped for six months, how will we take out our money? Why did you close the bank? Answer us,” the angry customer shouted at the bank official, who responded that depositors’ money will not go anywhere.

However, the assurance failed to calm the tempers. “We have deposited our salaries here? How do we run our homes? There are people who are suffering from ailments. How should they manage their expenses? How do we pay our bills,” he questioned angrily.

Another woman said that the customers have been waiting outside the bank from morning but have not got any answers on what happens to their money. Questioning the security outside the bank, she said, “Law is for everyone, right? What kind of law is this? The police are only protecting them. Why aren’t the police supporting us? Why aren’t they letting us go inside and ask? We have been standing here since morning,” she said.  

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