No money, no vote, say co-op bank depositors

Depositors of co-operative banks that had gone bust over the past two years are now on a warpath.

Fed up with the unkept promises made by the Bharatiya Janata Party before the December 2002 Assembly elections, depositors have now launched a 'No Money, No Vote' campaign. The BJP had assured depositors that they will get back their money if the party was voted to power.

With around 40 lakh depositors of co-operative banks not having received even their insured money, the issue could snowball into a major embarrassment for the ruling BJP in the state, just ahead of the general elections.

In this month alone, the All Gujarat Co-operative Banks Depositors and Account Holders Association (AGCBDAHA), which is spearheading the agitation, has held three meetings "" the first at Maninagar in Ahmedabad and the other two at Nadiad and Visnagar. Over 5000 depositors have already been listed in the signature campaign that the oganisation has started.

"The reason is simple. We want to remind the state government that it made tall promises before the Assembly election that all depositors of weak co-operative banks will get their money back. Today, more than a year after the BJP came back to power in the state, not a single depositor has got back the insured amount," said Prakash Gurjar, president, AGCBDAHA.

He said the state government cannot take the credit for the disbursement of insured money about six months back to depositors of Janata Co-operative Bank, Ahmedabad Urban Co-operative Bank and Bhagyalaxmi Co-operative Bank.

"These claims had been made years ago. It is the Deposit Insurance Credit Guarantee Association (DICGA) that has made the payments," he said.

The insured sum of Genco Co-operative Bank is Rs 72 crore, that of Visnagar bank is Rs 391 crore, and the sum insured of Charottar Nagarik Co-operative Bank is Rs 147 crore. "It is the duty of the state government to file claims for insured money with the DICGA and the rule is that the DICGA must disburse the amount in 60 days," Gurjar stated.

Over the next fortnight, the organisation will organise meetings of depositors in Mehsana, Anand and Vadodara. "Before the April 20 election, we intend to cover the entire state and remind the government of the promises it failed to fulfill," said Gurjar.

He added that the state government, through the registrar of co-operatives, must expedite the process of depositors getting their insured money back.

Gurjar said that the anger among depositors, who feel cheated, is so strong that despite the India-Pakistan cricket match being beamed live on television on Sunday, thousands of depositors in areas surrounding Visnagar gathered for the AGCBDAHA meeting.

"Close to 40 lakh depositors will not cast their vote if the government does not take steps to repay at least the insured amount," Gurjar said. Despite several attempts, co-operation minister Bhupendrasinh Chudasama could not be reached for comments.