264 Big Wilful Defaulters Owe Rs 1.08 Lakh Crore to Banks, Reveals RBI
By EDITORIAL TEAM INSOL India Posted On : March 15, 2021
In a reply to an application filed under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, 2005 the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) stated that there were 1913 wilful defaulters together owing Rs 1.46 lakh crore to banks as on June 2020. Mehul Choksi's scam-hit company, Gitanjali Gems Ltd, who owes Rs 5,747.05 crore led the list and was followed by REI Agro Ltd with an amount of Rs 3,516 crore and Frost International Ltd with an outstanding amount of Rs 3,097.64 crore.
Information provided by RBI does not reveal names of the banks who had given these loans. However, data shared by All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA) shows that among the 17 public sector lenders, SBI had the highest number of wilful defaulters at 685 altogether defaulting on loans worth Rs. 43,887 crore. It is followed by PNB which had 325 wilful defaulters with an outstanding amount of Rs. 22,370 crore. However, the data shared by the bank employees’ union does not have information about wilful defaulters in Union Bank of India (UBI) and IDBI Bank Ltd.
%u200BWhile common borrowers are struggling to repay the equated monthly instalments (EMIs) of their loans and face harassment for missing even a single EMI, big and wilful defaulters seem to not only go scot-free but also appear to be calm and without any worry or fear of any action due to banks, especially public sector banks (PSBs), turning a blind eye to their lapses.
Information provided by RBI does not reveal names of the banks who had given these loans. However, data shared by All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA) shows that among the 17 public sector lenders, SBI had the highest number of wilful defaulters at 685 altogether defaulting on loans worth Rs. 43,887 crore. It is followed by PNB which had 325 wilful defaulters with an outstanding amount of Rs. 22,370 crore. However, the data shared by the bank employees’ union does not have information about wilful defaulters in Union Bank of India (UBI) and IDBI Bank Ltd.
%u200BWhile common borrowers are struggling to repay the equated monthly instalments (EMIs) of their loans and face harassment for missing even a single EMI, big and wilful defaulters seem to not only go scot-free but also appear to be calm and without any worry or fear of any action due to banks, especially public sector banks (PSBs), turning a blind eye to their lapses.