Mumbai, Mar 20 (IANS): In a unique move, major bank unions shall initiate a ‘voter awareness’ campaign next month among the masses and question Lok Sabha candidates of all political parties on critical issues pertaining to the banking sector, officials said here.

The crusade will kickstart under the auspices of the Maharashtra State Bank Employees Federation (MSBEF) and then would be taken up in all other states going to elections in different phases over April-May 2024.

“We shall launch the ‘voter awareness’ drive in Maharashtra from April 8 after a key meeting in Mumbai, and subsequently it is expected to be taken up in other states by various banking unions of this stressed sector of the Indian economy,” MSBEF General Secretary Devidas Tuljapurkar told IANS.

It will comprise public meetings by bank unions, through audio-visual shows, distributing multi-lingual pamphlets, social and traditional media campaigns, putting up banners/posters, etc., explained MSBEF Organising Secretary N. Shankar.

Besides creating awareness of the challenges confronting the banks which are the custodians of public wealth, the unions shall pose tough and searching questions to candidates irrespective of their party affiliations, the duo added.

They added that as banking has reached almost every household in the past 15 years, the unions will directly or indirectly address crores of citizens and voters across the state.

Presently, there are more than 80,000 branches of various public and private sector banks in India, (not counting the cooperative banks) and the MSBEF or its affiliated unions claim influence in over 40,000 branches, including around 12,000 in Maharashtra.

“Wherever there is a bank branch, we shall raise public concerns like the recent electoral bonds, deplorable connivance of bankers with the government, the banks’ privatisation policies leading to joblessness and insecurity of the common man’s money, the plunder by big corporates of crores of rupees of public monies, exorbitant service charges to customers and other burning problems,” the MSBEF said.

Banking industry expert and Trade Unions Joint Action Committee (TUJAC) Co-Convenor Vishwas Utagi said that he had first brought these issues in the public domain nearly 20 years ago and how banks are exposed to a political-corporate nexus, particularly the bad debts, selective write-offs with huge hair-cuts, lack of accountability and posing a risk to the hard-earned money of the ordinary masses.

“Through TUJAC, we plan to spread awareness among all other important sectors of the economy which are getting directly affected on account of the ills plaguing the banking sector, like the Electoral Bonds which were introduced in India through a finance bill (2017) which we had opposed,” Utagi told IANS.

The MSBEF said its leaders and activists shall reach out to all political parties and their candidates, and demand a clarification from them on the (above) issues hurting the banking sector.

“If they do not stand by the banks and the people at large, then we shall appeal to the public to defeat such parties and their candidates,” warned the MSBEF flatly to all, the ruling establishment and contending Opposition political groups, all vying to grab power in 2024.