Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) targeted Congress on Sunday (October 19, 2025) after Jairam Ramesh’s remarks on the issue of acquisition of banks by foreign companies in the country. BJP said that the party which brought about the worst banking crisis in independent India is in no position to preach to anyone.
Jairam Ramesh, general secretary in charge of communication affairs of the Congress, said that it is imprudent to allow foreign companies to gradually acquire Indian banks, as it creates a lot of risk. He reminded that Jan Sangh had criticized the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi for not nationalizing foreign banks in July 1969.
What comment did Congress leader Jairam Ramesh make?,
Rajya Sabha member Jairam Ramesh said in a post on social media platform X, ‘First of all, Lakshmi Vilas Bank was acquired by Singapore’s DBS Group. Second, Catholic Syrian Bank was acquired by Fairfax of Canada. Third, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation of Japan acquired YES Bank. Now news is coming that Emirates NBD of Dubai is acquiring RBL Bank. He said, ‘And certainly the first full privatization of a public sector bank in India is expected to be completed in this financial year. This is the sale of IDBI Bank.
upa Indian banks are mere political toys in the government- Malviya
Hitting back at Ramesh, BJP’s IT cell chief Amit Malviya said, ‘It is a bit strange to hear a lecture on banking prudence from the person whose party scripted the collapse of India’s banking system.’ He said, ‘Under UPA, Indian banks became political toys, bad loans increased drastically, scams increased and the dual balance sheet crisis brought the entire financial sector to its knees.’
Malviya alleged that Congress has created rot in the system. He said, ‘Even your admirer Raghuram Rajan has confirmed that the bad loans troubling the banks were largely sanctioned during the UPA period.’ He said that the party which presided over the worst banking crisis in independent India is in no position to preach conscience to anyone.
Congress leader’s comments are hollow rhetoric- Malviya
The BJP leader termed Ramesh’s comments on the issue as empty rhetoric and cited government data to underline the remarkable transformation in India’s public sector banks under the Narendra Modi government.
He said in a post on Today, after a decade of relentless cleanup and reforms, these figures tell the story of a remarkable transformation in India’s public sector banks.’
RBI All changes took place under the supervision of – Malviya
Malviya said, ‘Net NPA has reduced to only Rs 0.73 lakh crore (0.76 percent). Capital adequacy increased from 11.45 percent to 15.55 percent. Provision coverage doubled from 46 percent to 93 percent. Total net profit increased from Rs 0.45 lakh crore to Rs 1.41 lakh crore. He said, ‘This change is the result of strict regulation of the Reserve Bank of India, strong governance framework, IBC-driven reforms and deep structural reforms. Today Indian banks are strong, profitable and globally renowned, a stark contrast to the mess left behind by the Congress.
He said, ‘Let us clarify another distortion that investments and operations of scheduled commercial banks are subject to strict supervision of RBI and come under India’s balanced approach to globalization of the financial sector. These are signs of global confidence in India’s banking system, a confidence that could not have been imagined during your tenure, when foreign investors were fleeing the country.
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