New Delhi. HDFC Bank, the country’s second largest private bank, has appointed external law firms for an independent investigation into the issues raised in the resignation of former chairman Atanu Chakraborty. The bank has taken this step to ensure fact-based and unbiased assessment.
An HDFC Bank spokesperson said on Tuesday that the appointment of external law firms is a proactive step, so that all the aspects raised in the letter can be independently reviewed and to ensure an objective and fact-based assessment.
He said that this step has been taken with the aim of ensuring constant review and comparison in line with the highest corporate governance standards followed by the bank over the decades.
HDFC Bank’s part-time chairman Atanu Chakraborty had suddenly stepped down from his post citing ethical concerns. His resignation became effective from March 18.
This is the first time that a part-time chairman of the bank has resigned in the middle of his tenure, raising questions about the functioning of the bank. Chakraborty was appointed part-time chairman with effect from May 5, 2021, nearly a year after his retirement as Economic Affairs Secretary.
His tenure was extended for three more years in 2024 till May 4, 2027. Chakraborty is a 1985 batch IAS officer of Gujarat cadre.
He retired as Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs in April 2020. Earlier he was the Secretary of the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM). Both these departments come under the Finance Ministry.
Chakraborty became chairman during the ‘reverse merger’ process with the bank’s parent company HDFC Ltd, the country’s leading housing finance company.
The merger of HDFC Limited with HDFC Bank took effect from July 1, 2023, creating a giant financial entity with a combined balance sheet of over Rs 18 lakh crore.
Chakraborty had said in his resignation letter dated March 17 that in the last two years, I have seen some incidents and working practices within the bank which are not in accordance with my personal values and ethics.
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