AGENCY
new delhi, MAY 6:
The Congress on Tuesday took serious exception to what it said was the manner in which Union Bank of India, Public sector lender, paid about Rs 7.25 crore to purchase nearly 200,000 copies of a book India@100 authored by former Chief Economic Adviser Krishnamurthy V Subramanian. “But even as backbreaking Price Rise continues to bankrupt the common people, Modi Govt’s Finance Ministry instructed the board of directors of Union Bank of India to buy 7.25 Crore worth of books written by Modi ji’s BHAKT,” Congress’ National Spokesperson Supriya Shrinate alleged, raising suspicions. The Union Bank of India is under scrutiny for purchasing nearly two lakh copies of Mr Subramanian’s book, ‘India@100,’ for Rs 7.25 crore. The expenditure had since faced internal opposition, leading to a general manager’s suspension and an investigation by KPMG, a global professional services network providing services in audit, tax, and advisory.
The government had on Sunday abruptly terminated the services of Mr Subramanian as its executive director at the International Monetary Fund with immediate effect, about six months before his three-year tenure was due to end. “The government has so far given no reason for this abrupt and rare sacking,” said Ms Shrinate recalling “He is the same K V Subramanian who was the Chief Economic Advisor and who had during Covid, when the economy had shrunk by over 24 per cent predicted a V shaped recovery one that never happened.”
“So what happened suddenly which embarrassed the government to sack him? Because this is not usually done and especially when only 6 months are left in the tenure. This rare and unprecedented step was taken because of impropriety,” she alleged.
She asserted that internal documents of public sector bank, Union Bank Of India bring to light the fact that the bank placed an order for 2 lakh copies of Subramanian’s book, India@100 at a whopping cost of Rs 7.25 crore, of which Rs 3.5 crore was paid in advance.
“Ms Shrinate claimed that “the cost of this blatant propaganda is not being incurred by the BJP, but the burden is being borne by the public exchequer, actually the common man. And it is being done because Subramanian justified every economic blunder and flawed policy of the government and made baseless allegations against the economic policies of the previous governments.”
She claimed that the episode raises several key questions of wastage of public money and gross impropriety including the allegation “that the MD and CEO of Union Bank of India, Ms Manimekhalai, who is due for an extension in June 2025, has facilitated the royalty payments from this purchase as an indirect bribe to lobby for her extension, securing approval through none less than PM (Narendra) Modi.”
