Hyderabad, Jul 26 (FN Bureau) Padma Shri Awardee, Senior Advocate of Supreme Court and former Additional Solicitor General Indira Jaisingh opined that the intent of the Centre to privatise the Public Sector Banks (PSBs) is an anti-poverty move and against the Constitutional values of the country. Delivering his lecture on ”privatisation and its impact on constitutional rights” on the 25th day of the month-long AIBEA National Webinars to commemorate the 52nd anniversary of Bank Nationalisation on theme ‘Vibrant Banking for Vibrant India’ and focus ‘people’s money for people’s Welfare’, on Sunday evening, the former Additional Solicitor General said we need to understand and remember is that the framers of the Constitution of our country had in their mind – freedom from poverty, freedom to live, freedom to practice religion and all these have been enshrined into the Constitution of India.
What is under attack now is the preamble to the Constitution, the aims to the social, economic and secular aspects of it. The fundamental rights and the Directive Principles of the State Policy are the core aspects of the Constitution of India, she said. Ms Indira, also the human rights lawyer said, the morality of the Constitution of India has been touched about by the Courts. The Constitutional Morality lies in the preamble, fundamental rights and the Directive Principles of State Policy. The Senior Advocate said there is a sharp difference of the obligations of the public sector and the obligations of the private sector and the accountability of the public sector and the private sector also differs. Accountability of the public sector is 100 per cent to the people of the country but the private sector does not have that accountability, Ms Indira Jaising said the biggest issue that will come up in case of privatisation of banks will be the accountability aspect. ”The relationship between the customer and a private bank is a contract. In case of public sector banks, it is in the nature of constitutional right. Each and every aspect of working of the public sector bank can be scrutinized by the Court”, the Padma Shri Awardee said.
The Supreme Court has often said that there should be a decent living to the working people. The Public Sector Banks and its Nationalisation way back in 1969 is in the public interest. Therefore, any move to privatise the PBBs is an anti-poverty move and against the Constitutional values of the country. There is a huge mismatch between the aim that is claimed by the government for privatisation and the actual ground reality. The government did not get to the economic offenders of the country. 2008 financial debacle of the world, the rich and western nations is an ample example of the mismanagement of the private sector and their activities, she said many people of the country rely on the schemes implemented by the Public Sector Banks even today. The former additional Solicitor General said Article 36 to Article 51 are the Directive principles of State Policy that is given to ensure that there will be social equality, economic equality, that guarantees common good.
But, what is happening in the country is that the rulers seem to have lost their belief in the Constitution of the country. The National Resources of the country are held by the government for the public good. The giving away of the National resources through privatisation is handing over those resources to the private hands, she added. Ms Indira said in 2003, the Supreme Court has gone against the privatisation of HPCL and BPCL, stating that these have been acquired by the Government in public interest and said further that they are against the Constitutional values. She said that Privatisation can lead to monopolies but unfortunately India does not have the monopolies restrictive regime and so the country is unable to restrain rogue capitalism and crony capitalism. The Human Rights lawyer commended the efforts of the Delhi Government and its efforts to make the public sector schools as excellent as the private schools. Taking cue from this, she said that public sector institutions can be as efficient as the private sector but only the will of the government is absent and lacking. The recent pandemic that the country has witnessed and it has shown up the dangers of the privatised health sector.
There was no functioning of the public healthcare till then. In India, healthcare and hospitals are in private hands. Privatisation, liberalisation and monopolies go hand in hand in detriment to the common people of the country. A country, which is an epitome of capitalist economy, gives to all its citizens free vaccination but in India, which is a socialist, secular and democratic, the vaccines against Covid are having cost! ”What is happening around us is outside the framework of the Constitution. It is difficult to challenge these in the Courts of law. But, we should start opposing these attempts and one such move is made by AIBEA by arranging these seminars so that people will decide and fight for what this country has to be. Solution to all this can be found only when we mobilise a massive public opinion against this”, she added.