SRINAGAR: Bharatiya Janata Party welcomes the conduct of raids by the Income Tax Department in the premises and offices of a prominent citizen of Srinagar stated Brig Anil Gupta, State Spokesperson of the Party.
The facts revealed by the IT department are eye opener for the people of the state and just a tip of the iceberg asserted Brig Gupta. The raids follow the sacking of the former Chairman cum Managing Director of J&K Bank, Pervez Ahmad and have exposed the way the bank used to operate to help the rich and influential at the expense of the ordinary citizens.
While the ordinary citizens especially farmers, traders, shopkeepers and artisans were served legal notices and harassed for default in repayment of loans, the wealthy and influential with political patronage were allowed to negotiate the repayments with substantial subsidies asserted Brig Gupta.
The most damaging and alarming information revealed is that repayment of negotiated amount of Rs.50.34 crore was also paid by taking fresh loan of similar amount from the Bank, rued Brig Gupta. The financial irregularities carried out by the bank to benefit a few influential families and political leaders and its opaque system of functioning needs thorough investigation demanded Brig Gupta.
The suspicious role of the Bank in Hawala transactions and terror financing is a matter of grave concern and detrimental to national security stated Brig Gupta.
The mere sacking of the previous MD is not the answer to the mesh of corruption and shady deals in which the J&K Bank was involved under political patronage. There are many skeletons yet in the cupboard waiting to tumble. Only a thorough enquiry into the complete functioning of the Bank during the last two decades, when the MD of the Bank was mostly a political appointee, will be able to bring to light the massive damage done to the state’s exchequer and depositors’ money asserted Brig Gupta.
The nepotism, favouritism and political interference which were the hall marks of the Bank have ruined not only the Bank but hopes and careers of many deserving and needy youth of Jammu and Ladakh regions. The reluctance of the Bank to come under Right to Information Act despite the decision of the State Administrative Council in November last year reveals the evil and malafideintent of the management of the Bank rued Brig Gupta.
The involvement of the Bank in preparing inflated and bogus bills to claim more subsidy from the government amounts to violation of fair practices which every bank is obliged to follow under the law. It is a serious breach which needs further investigation to find out how many more parties have benefitted like this with the connivance of the Bank. BJP requests the Honourable Governor to order a thorough probe into all aspects of the functioning of J&K Bank so that the guilty are brought to the book and bank can be cleansed to restore the confidence of the people in the Bank. (PTK)
