The United Forum of Bank Unions (UFBU) wrote a letter to Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis to ensure the security of banking officials after some MNS activists visited different branches across the state, assaulting and threatening the bank staffs.
This started after an appeal was made by MNS chief Raj Thackeray at his Gudi Padwa rally on March 30, stating that his party activists would not back down on slapping people residing in the state if they refuse to speak Marathi. He asked MNS workers to check every bank and every establishment whether Marathi is being used or not. Since then, multiple assaults even threatening and beating have been reported against bank managers across Thane and Pune.
Rajeev Tamhane, Chairman of Bank of Maharashtra Officers’ Association also wrote a letter regarding bankers safety and requested to take action against the offender. He said that since bankers are part of an all-India service, they come from diverse linguistic backgrounds and it is not possible for every officer to learn the local language.
He also requested Managing Directors (MDs), Chief Executive Officers (CEOs), Executive Directors (EDs), and Zonal Managers (ZMs) to take immediate action against such threats or they will go for other legal measures or strikes.
In response, Maharashtra CM said that insisting on speaking Marathi language is not wrong but taking the law into hands is not accepted and strict action will be taken against the guilty person.
Banks where an assault is seen by MNS workers
Bank of Maharashtra – In Ambernath, a video went viral where MNS activists were seen threatening the branch manager for not being able to speak Marathi. In the clip it was clearly visible some MNS workers banging a table, pushing the computer table and shouting at the manager for unable to speak Hindi.
Karnataka Bank – In Thane, MNS city chief Ravindra More, along with other workers visited the Vartak Nagar branch, removed the informative board written in English and asked them to display the information in Marathi. They also presented a Marathi alphabet book to the manager.
State Bank of India – In Lonavala, MNS workers were seen in video, threatening the branch manager for not speaking Marathi and when a Marathi speaking staff tried to make them understand, he was slapped and pushed out of the cabin. A complaint has been registered against one bank employee for slapping the bank manager.
Bank officers are already under pressure as audit are going on in maximum branches and are working day and night even on Sundays to meet the deadline. Such incidents are affecting the day to day functioning and customer service of the banks. The Government should immediately take strict action against such criminal activity and ensure it is not be repeated again.