ALL INDIA BANK EMPLOYEES' ASSOCIATION

Central Office: “PRABHAT NIVAS” Regn. No.2037

Singapore Plaza, 164, Linghi Chetty Street, Chennai-600001
Phone: 2535 1522 Fax: 2535 8853 Web: www.aibea.in
e mail ~ chv.aibea@gmail.com & aibeahq@gmail.com

CIRCULAR NO. 28/180/2020/18

[
12-3-2020
TO ALL UNITS AND MEMBERS:
Dear Comrades,

• Make all-out preparations for the success of our All

India Strike on 27th March, 2020 against proposed
merger of 10 Banks and privatisation of IDBI Bank
By now all our units have received our Joint Circular from AIBEA and AIBOA
regarding the call for All India Strike on 27 th March, 2020 to protest against
the proposed merger of 10 Banks and against the privatisation of IDBI Bank
and other related demands. We are sure all our units are making the
preparation for the success of this strike. As per the decision of our AIBEA
Office bearers meeting held at Chennai on 26-2-2020, we had taken up the
matter with other unions under UFBU for a possible joint programme against
these unwarranted moves of the Government. Since there was no positive
response in this regard, we have given the call for strike on 27-3-2020.

We need to protest against merger of Banks: We are aware that the

Government is going ahead with the merger plan since the same has been
approved by the Cabinet and the Scheme of Amalgamation has been
approved. However, such a major retrograde move of the Government
cannot go unopposed. Time will prove that AIBEA’s opposition to merger of
Banks was right just as many other standpoints of AIBEA are getting
vindicated by what is going on in the banking sector today. Our struggle
against encouragement being given to new private Banks has been fully
vindicated by the Yes Bank debacle. Hence we need to oppose and protest
against this wholesale merger of Banks.

We need to oppose privatisation of IDBI Bank: Similarly, while private

sector banking is under severe stress due to ongoings in many new private
Banks and the fall of much trumpeted Yes Bank, it is an irony that in the
recent Budget, the Government has announced that their entire 47% stake in
IDBI Bank will be given to private hands thus announcing the virtual
privatisation of IDBI Bank. The problem of huge NPA faced by IDBI Bank is
only to default of huge loans private companies and corporates and yet the
Government wants to hand over IDBI Bank to the very same villainous private
sector.
Yes Bank debacle – Can the Government and RBI absolve themselves
? Despite clear signals, the Government and RBI were silent spectators -
perhaps, wanton and deliberate – about what was going on in Yes Bank. Now
things are coming out one by one. When the public sector banks were
pleading for more capital, the Government said that we cannot play with tax-
payers money but when it came to Yes Bank, there is such a hurry to bail
them out through SBI. We will build up a campaign demanding stern action
on Rana Kapoor and all other top officials of Yes Bank, gross negligence and
inaction on the part of RBI to take timely action on Yes Bank crisis, and
inefficiency of the Government in dealing with the emerging banking crisis.

We want Recover of Bad Loans – Government talks of Resolution and

haircut: The piling up of bad loans is the main and serious issue before the
Banks today. From AIBEA we have been demanding tough action on the big
corporate defaulters. After a lot of struggle and campaign by AIBEA, we are
happy that RBI has now agreed that some of the names of the top defaulters
will be published. We need to continue and intensify our struggle against bad
loans. Unless the bad loans are recovered, there is no solution to the woes
of our Banks. But unfortunately, the present Government is harping on
‘resolution of loans’ which results in huge haircuts. Because of these haircuts,
Banks are losing money and incurring losses. Hence our struggle for recover
of bad loans also needs to be heightened.

In this background, our strike on 27th March, 2020 assumes importance.

Meetings should be held at all centres to explain the importance fo the strike
and prepare our members for the total success of the strike.

We are approaching all other Unions to extend their fraternal support to our
strike.

Let us move, let us march on, let us make the strike a success.

Down with unwarranted merger of Banks

Down with privatisation of IDBI Bank
With greetings,
Yours Comradely

C.H. VENKATACHALAM
GENERAL SECRETARY