RBI in favor of making NPA-inspection report public, banks expressed opposition, know the whole matter

New Delhi. Bank of Baroda, RBL Bank, Yes Bank and State Bank of India have approached the Central Information Commission (CIC) objecting to making public information like list of defaulters and NPAs, penalties and inspection reports. On the other hand, RBI said that these records can be disclosed under the RTI Act.

RTI applicants Dheeraj Mishra, Vathiraj, Girish Mittal and Radha Raman Tiwari had filed separate applications in RBI seeking information in this regard. They had sought other information including documents related to Yes Bank’s top 100 NPAs and willful defaulters, inspection reports of SBI and RBL and monetary penalty of Rs 4.34 crore imposed on Bank of Baroda following statutory inspection.

These banks appealed to the CIC after banking regulator RBI found that the information sought by RTI applicants could be made public under the RTI Act. Information Commissioner Khushwant Singh Sethi referred the matter to a larger bench of the CIC to decide on the issues raised by the banks. There has been a ban on giving information till the final decision.

Experts say the outcome of the case could have a major long-term impact on transparency in banking, depositors’ rights and regulatory accountability, especially given the increased public scrutiny over NPAs, penalties and lack of oversight. Banks are arguing that disclosure of regulatory information would harm their business interests.

Bank of Baroda has challenged in the Supreme Court the decision of the RBI, which allowed the disclosure of documents related to the penalty of Rs 4.34 crore on the bank. RBL Bank, Yes Bank and SBI also objected to giving information in a similar case.

RBI has clarified that the RTI Act, 2005 is above all previous laws and its objective is to ensure transparency. RBI said that the Supreme Court has approved making the list of defaulters and inspection reports public.