CIC directs SBI to Disclose Aggregate Settled Amount of The Defaulting Cases Which Were Compromised

In recent times, Banks have gone in a big way for settlement of the NPA by waiving crores of public money. No doubt, the settlement of NPAs by way of waiving certain amount is a good idea to bring back the sticky amount back into banking channel. However, the recent trends indicate that a large number of top brass has been waiving hundreds of crores with ulterior motives. There is fear among the general public that a major fraud may be taking place in this regard. Till date, banks have been keeping this as a secret as to the amount which has been waived. Even when people tried to get the information through RTI, banks have refused to supply this information.

In a recent judgment (Appeal No CIC/DS/A/2011/000841) CIC in the case of Shri Kulbhushan Jain vs SBI, it has been decided that the contention of SBI in not disclosing such an information is not correct. The Commission after hearing both the parties decied that there is a public interest involved in disclosing the year wise aggregate settled amount by the banks with the defaulting parties as it will help in transparent functioning of the public authority which is the very objective of the RTI Act. Accordingly, Commission directed SBi to furnish information limited to the total number of entities who have defaulted and the total settled amount.

Click Here to Download Full Judgment : Shri Kulbhushan Jain Vs SBI, Vijaywada / Hyderabad