To 

The Hon'ble President of India

Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Delhi

Madam President,

We, the undersigned citizens, employees, officers, customers and supporters of public-interest banking, respectfully seek your intervention as the constitutional Head of the Republic to secure a reconsideration of the proposed privatisation of IDBI Bank. This petition is initiated by the United Forum of IDBI Officers & Employees.

A national institution, a national responsibility

IDBI was established in 1964 to serve India's industrial development. Its contribution to industry, infrastructure and productive capacity forms part of the nation's institutional heritage. Its transformation into a commercial bank should not extinguish that public purpose. We believe that transferring control of such an institution to private interests, particularly foreign controlled interests, raises serious questions of economic sovereignty, democratic accountability and national interest.

Honour the assurance given to Parliament

During consideration of the 2003 legislation transforming IDBI, the then Finance Minister, Shri Jaswant Singh, assured Parliament that the Government would retain at least 51 per cent ownership. We submit that this solemn assurance must be addressed openly and substantively before any further transfer of control. An assurance to Parliament carries a responsibility to the people that cannot be answered merely by treating privatisation as an administrative transaction.

The supplied compilation records subsequent parliamentary interventions and questions concerning disinvestment, employee protection and reservation. It does not identify an express parliamentary decision withdrawing or modifying the 2003 assurance. We therefore seek examination of the original assurance and its subsequent treatment by the competent parliamentary committees, and a reasoned statement by the Government before Parliament.

Protect social justice and equal opportunity

Public banking has provided an important avenue of opportunity for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, persons with disabilities and other disadvantaged sections. We are deeply concerned about the future of reservation in recruitment and promotion wherever applicable, representation, and related safeguards following privatisation. Temporary protection of existing employees cannot substitute for durable opportunities for future generations. These concerns deserve explicit, enforceable answers before any irreversible step.

 

Keep ordinary people within the banking system

Banking is an essential instrument of economic participation. Small depositors, farmers, workers, pensioners, women, small businesses and underserved communities require affordable accounts, accessible branches, fair credit and responsive grievance redress. We fear that a stronger emphasis on commercial returns may lead to higher charges, reduced physical access or diminished attention to less profitable customers and regions. Exclusion from banking can become exclusion from development.

Safeguard economic sovereignty and public assets

Economic sovereignty requires the capacity to direct finance towards national development and social priorities. We do not suggest that foreign investment by itself establishes wrongdoing. Our concern is the transfer of strategic control, the long-term use of public savings and an institution built through national effort. Public investment and institutional recovery must be assessed alongside valuation, future earning capacity, public-service obligations and the consequences of losing public control.

Our respectful appeal

We recognise that the President exercises constitutional functions within the framework of parliamentary government. We therefore request Your Excellency to cause this petition to be placed before the Union Government for urgent consideration and to seek an appropriate response through the constitutional processes available.

1. Urge the Union Government to keep further implementation of the strategic sale and transfer of management control in abeyance pending a comprehensive review.
2. Seek a transparent examination of the 2003 parliamentary assurance, with reference to the competent parliamentary committees, and a reasoned explanation to Parliament before further action.
3. Urge reconsideration of privatisation and preservation of IDBI Bank's public-sector character and development-oriented role, with effective public ownership and control.
4. Call for meaningful consultation with employee organisations, customers, representatives of disadvantaged communities and other stakeholders; and disclosure of the review's findings and material transaction safeguards, subject to legitimate legal restrictions.
5. Seek binding protection of applicable reservation and social-justice safeguards, employees' service and retirement interests, and affordable, accessible banking for ordinary citizens and underserved areas.

Madam President, this petition concerns the democratic trust embodied in a parliamentary assurance, the opportunities of disadvantaged communities and the right of ordinary people to participate in economic development. We appeal for your intervention to ensure that these national interests receive full consideration before an irreversible decision is implemented.

 Respectfully submitted on behalf of the undersigned,

United Forum of IDBI Officers & Employees

Devidas Tuljapurkar

Convenor

Vithal Koteswara Rao A.V.

Joint Convenor

Ratnakar Wankhade

Joint Convenor

Online endorsement: I support this petition and request a review of IDBI Bank privatisation in the interests of

parliamentary accountability, social justice, inclusive banking and national development