BANK Employees Federation of India (BEFI) in its central committee meeting held at Bengaluru on March 8 had a thorough discussion on the present political scenario of the country in the wake of the 16th Lok Sabha elections. The general secretary while initiating the discussions briefed about the vulnerability of the banking industry and the dangers faced by the public sector banks due to the faulty policy of the successive governments at the centre be it the Congress government or Congress led UPA government or BJP led NDA government. He narrated how the industry withstood the onslaughts of the Government of India ably aided and assisted by Reserve Bank of India due to the vigilance and struggles of the bank employees under the militant leadership of BEFI and UFBU (United Forum of Bank Unions) fully backed by the leaders of the Left Parties both within the parliament and outside the parliament. He outlined the need to give all out support to the Left Parties at this juncture in order to give voice to voiceless and the under-privileged. There was an enthusiastic support to the proposal of the general secretary. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has come out with a policy paper in August 2013 to reduce the government shareholding in public sector banks from the present minimum of 51%. This is nothing but a clear attempt of privatisation of the public sector banks at the instance of UPA-2 government. The BJP led NDA government at the centre also made a serious attempt to privatise public sector banks in December 2000 through legislation in Lok Sabha to reduce the government holding from 51% to 33%. This move could be thwarted only because of the militant struggles including strike by UFBU and the support extended by Left Parties and Central Trade Unions like CITU and AITUC. There is an imminent danger of privatisation of public sector banks if any of the dispensation – be it Congress led UPA or BJP led NDA – comes back to power at the centre. The so-called banking reforms were pushed through in the parliament by the UPA-2 government in December 2012 with the solid support of the opposition BJP. These measures diluted the public sector character of the banking industry. The ceiling of private shareholding rights of the public sector banks pegged at 1% was increased to 10%. Similar ceiling in private sector banks pegged at 10% was increased to 26% enabling foreign based multi-national corporations to take over indigenous private sector banks in the backdrop of foreign direct investment ceiling in the banking industry at 74%. What BEFI central committee apprehended has become true now. With the clearance of Election Commission, Reserve Bank of India, under the present UPA-2 government’s direction is likely to issue licences very shortly to the corporates to start new banks. It is needless to mention that this move is sure to endanger the interests of the common men and women. The major private banks, which were serving the interest of the promoters, were first nationalised in 1969 in order to subserve the national priorities. But again the corporates are going to be accorded permission to open new banks to create unhealthy competition. The people at the helm of the affairs of the Congress led UPA-2 government do not want to wait even for a few weeks so that the new government can take a fresh look about the whole issue. It has been reported in the press in March last year that three private sector banks, viz. Axis Bank, HDFC Bank & ICICI Bank have been indulging in rampant financial malpractices in flagrant violation of tax laws, banking laws, FEMA, PMLA, RBI regulations/directives/guidelines, KYC norms, etc leading to money laundering of astronomical proportions. Legislation was introduced last year in Lok Sabha to privatise regional rural banks (RRBs). Presently 64 RRBs are functioning with the network of 17856 branches with the shareholding of central government-50%, sponsor banks-35% and respective state governments-15%. The total loans and advances outstanding as of last year March was nearly Rs 1, 40,000 crores. These banks mainly lend to rural poor and marginalised people numbering more than a crore. If these banks are privatised and the rural poor are once again driven to the usurious money lenders for their needs, one can imagine what their plight would be. Similarly attempts are made to privatise urban co-operative banks. Nearly 93,000 Primary Agriculture Co-operative Societies are going to be converted as business correspondents of District Central Co-operative Banks thus making them abandon their present role of lending to several lakhs of rural peasants. Besides that, the job security of more than three lakh employees is at stake. Thus the direction of the banking industry under the present UPA-2 government fully supported by the principal opposition party namely BJP is towards more and more private participation while curtailing the role of public sector banks, co-operative institutions and RRBs. The bank employees and officers under the banner of UFBU have been resisting these onslaughts of the central government. There have been several days’ strikes besides dharnas, demonstrations, campaign etc. Ten lakh bank employees and officers struck work on February 20-21, 2013 along with crores of working people to reverse these anti-people policies of the central government. BEFI central committee observed that BEFI, being a part of the broader working class movement, could not remain silent spectator when a major national event like election to the 16th Lok Sabha was scheduled. BEFI CC further observed : “During the entire period of struggle against neo liberal reforms in the banking sector as also on economic issues, our experience is that the Left has always supported our cause in the floors of the parliament as also outside. In this backdrop, our natural choice is to extend support in favour of the Left.” “The main stream media is trying to characterise the ensuing election as a fight between two individuals; one representing some constituents of NDA while the other representing constituents of UPA-2. Our experience is that there is no difference between these two forces so far as the economic policies are concerned.” Thus the meeting, recapitulated and acknowledged with appreciation and gratitude the glorious role of MPs belonging to the Left Parties, both inside the parliament and out of it, in defending the public sector, including the public sector banks, and in extending vociferous support to the bank employees’ and officers’ movement since the onset of the neo-liberal economic reforms regime, no less on the floor of the 15th LokSabha. Based on their experience, both in regard to their own issues/demands as also in regard to their struggle against reforms of the banking sector vis-à-vis the stand taken by MPs belonging to different political parties and groups, BEFI CC appealed to the bank employees and officers fraternity to work for ensuring the victory of candidates fielded by the Left, wherever they would be contesting, and, where there is no Left candidate, other non-Left political parties/ groups who are committed to fight against the anti-people policies of both UPA and NDA and to pursue pro-people economic policies.