Congress leader P. Chidambaram alleges on current ruling party; says Govt wants to capture RBI reserves

The Government of India and RBI on Monday are going to come into direct confrontation ahead of prolonged issues – prompt corrective action (PCA) and a special refinance window for non-banking financial companies (NBFCs). Ahead of the RBI board meeting, Congress leader P Chidambaram on Sunday alleged that the central government was determined to "capture" the bank to gain control over its Rs. 9 lakh crore reserves.

Chidambaram released a series of statements on Twitter.

"Government is determined to 'capture' RBI in order to gain control over the reserves. The other so-called disagreements are only a smokescreen (sic)," he said on microblogging site Twitter.

Chidambaram said, "Nowhere in the world is the central bank a board-managed company. To suggest that private business persons will direct the governor is a preposterous idea."

"November 19 will be a day of reckoning for central bank independence and the Indian economy," he tweeted.

The government on November 9 had said it was discussing an "appropriate" size of capital reserves that the central bank must maintain but denied seeking a massive capital transfer from the RBI.