New Delhi, 16 Mar: The Congress on Tuesday asked the government to accept the demands of the nine unions of public sector banks (PSB) that are on a two-day strike to protest privatization of two PSBs, and accused the Centre of working for the benefit of a few “crony capitalists.”
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi alleged that selling public sector banks to “cronies” would compromise the country’s financial security.
He also accused the government of “privatizing profit” and “nationalizing loss.”
Public sector bank employees began their two-day strike on Monday.
Employees of general insurance companies will strike on 17 March, and Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) employees have given a strike call on 18 March, leader of the opposition in the Rajya Sabha and senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge said.
“Despite so many people going on strike and protesting the policy of privatization, the government is neither listening to them nor looking to solve their problems,” Kharge said.
“The government has taken a decision to privatize two public sector banks without consulting the 75 crore account holders,” Kharge told reporters outside Parliament.
“We demand that the government should come clean on the issue. The demands of the workers of the nationalized bank must be accepted,” he said.
The Congress had on Monday extended its full support to the two-day strike call given by bank employee unions and said the Narendra Modi government is squarely responsible for the inconvenience caused to people. (PTI)
