Supreme Court Nudges Government And RBI To Publish Names Of Loan Defaulters

The Supreme Court on Friday once again observed that names of big loan defaulters must be disclosed while hearing a public interest litigation which sought the same.

During the hearing, the government's counsel, Solicitor General Ranjit Singh, informed the apex court that the Banking Regulation Act has been amended to deal with non-performing assets (NPAs). However, it will take time to see the implications of this ordinance.

The ordinance to amend the Banking Regulation Act, cleared by the Cabinet on Wednesday and approved by the President on Friday morning, has given the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) the power to take decisions on resolution of individual bad loan cases.

Commenting on the new ordinance, a three-judge bench comprising Justices JS Khehar, Sanjay Kishan Kaul and DY Chadrachud said: “These (ordinances) will keep coming and keep exonerating people by initiating insolvency proceedings.”

The RBI counsel told the apex court that the new ordinance is a revolutionary piece of legislation, assuring that it will clarify on names that can or can't be disclosed. The central bank pointed out that the disclosure of names will affect eight laws.