Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday issued a strong rebuttal of allegations made by Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi on the performance of India’s banking sector, especially Public Sector Banks (PSBs), stressing that during the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) tenure, PSBs were treated as ‘ATMs’ for their ‘cronies and shady businessmen’.

In a series of lengthy tweets, FM Sitharaman said that Rahul Gandhi’s penchant for making baseless statements is on full display, yet again.

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“India’s banking sector, especially Public Sector Banks (PSBs), have seen a remarkable turnaround under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Didn’t the people who met with the LoP tell him that high concentration of corporate credit and indiscriminate lending during UPA tenure had resulted in significant deterioration in the health of PSBs?” asked FM Sitharaman.

“It was actually during the UPA regime when bank employees were harassed and forced to give loans to cronies through “phone banking” by the then Congress-led UPA Govt functionaries,” the Finance Minister posted on X.

Sitharaman also detailed the financial support extended to PSBs, noting that the government had recapitalised them with Rs 3.26 lakh crore over the last decade.

She argued that this investment not only benefits the banks but also the public, as dividends from PSBs serve as a source of income for investors.

“The Public also has a shareholding in the PSBs and dividends are the source of income for such investors also. Not just for the GoI. Didn’t the people who met with the LoP tell him that during the UPA rule these PSBs paid dividends of Rs 56,534 crore?” said FM Sitharaman.

In his X post, Rahul Gandhi had alleged that PSBs were designed to give every Indian access to credit.

“The Modi government has turned these lifelines of the masses into private financiers for only the rich and powerful corporations,” he alleged, claiming that PSBs “are being forced to prioritise profit over people and are thus unable to serve the public effectively”.

FM Sitharaman countered Rahul Gandhi’s allegations, saying citizen-centric governance and inclusive development is the core principle of PM Modi government.

“Didn’t the people who met with the LoP tell him that 54 crore Jan Dhan accounts and more than 52 crore collateral-free loans under various flagship financial inclusion schemes (PM MUDRA, Stand-Up India, PM-SVANidhi, PM Vishwakarma) have been sanctioned?” she asked.

FM Sitharaman also mentioned the PM MUDRA scheme where 68 per cent of beneficiaries are women and under the PM-SVANidhi scheme, 44 per cent of beneficiaries are women.

“Didn’t the people who met with the LoP tell him that loans up to Rs. 10 lakh have increased by 238 per cent in the last 10 years, and their share in total loans has also increased from 19 per cent to 23 per cent?” said the finance minister.

On the issue of recruitment drives in the banking sector, she said that since 2014, PSBs had recruited nearly 3.94 lakh employees and as of October 2024, 96.61 per cent of officers and 96.67 per cent of subordinate staff were in position.

She further said that Rahul Gandhi’s misrepresentation of facts is an insult to the hardworking PSB employees and to the citizens who benefit from a cleaner, stronger banking system.

“It’s high time the @INCIndia up-skills the LOP’s understanding of governance,” said FM Sitharaman.