Dear RBI Governor, Don’t Break my Belief in You & the Institution

Please don’t let more damage come on to the people of India: A citizen’s request to the RBI Governor.

All the best, Governor! May the force be with you!

(Photo: Erum Gour/The Quint)

Dear sir,

It is an honour writing to you and voicing my concerns regarding the latest steps taken to fix the balance sheet of the nation.

I am no expert in the field of economics, but I can comprehend and understand the macro effects that policy decisions can have on the economy.

Sir, I have widely followed your decisions in the past as well as in the present. You were once the blue-eyed prince at the Reserve Bank of India, under former Governor Raghuram Rajan, and he had appreciated the contributions you had made during his term (which I believe were significant), in his book ‘I Do What I Do’.

After the baton was handed over to you in the year 2016, I was optimistic that you, more than anyone else, could uphold the integrity of the RBI and of the Indian economy because your experience is your testimony.

Little did I know that an economic catastrophe was underway and it would have passed through your hands. Yes sir, it was demonetisation. Exactly two years ago, a disaster struck and you did not oppose it. May be you had an obligation to the current government, but more than that, you had greater obligations to your office, which serves the people of India. The most amusing part is that the new currency notes, which emerged like a phoenix from the disaster, bore your signature.

The fall of the Rupee’s value and the market’s performance recently is not new to you. You have been on this side before and you had handled it efficiently in 2013-2014. As the deputy governor, you managed the Urjit Patel Committee and braved through the crisis. I wonder what went wrong. Now, you have the entire central bank under your command and not just a committee. Has the RBI’s autonomous identity been sacrificed to appease the current regime?

Recently, you were served a show cause notice from the Supreme Court of India for not abiding by its order to disclose the list of wilful defaulters of loans above Rs 50 crore. I am aware of the fact that your reply is pending on the same, and I am keenly looking forward to it. But, which force brought such a dedicated and talented brain to the point of disobeying the order of the highest court of the land?

With just a few months left till the end of your term, if you haven’t been able to make any amends to the harm done already, please don’t let more damage come on to the people of India.

Lastly, I would like to conclude by saying, let no power strong-arm the most dignified and irreplaceable economic institution of the nation. Don’t let the economy hanging in doom just because of a talent-averse Finance Ministry. I hope you and your team of deputy governors will hold on to their economic principles before taking any decisions.

I look forward to hearing from you, sir. I have always believed that institutions like the RBI have always come to our rescue, and people like you have headed them with zeal and utmost dignity.

ALL THE BEST, Governor! May the force be with you!

Your Hopeful Supporter/Citizen of India,

Vaibhav Pareek