States » NorthPosted at: Oct 30 2026 12:26PM


Rahul Gandhi backs IDBI bank employees, questions Modi govt’s move to sell lender to Fairfax

New Delhi, Oct 30 (UNI) Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, on Friday, came out in strong support of protesting IDBI Bank employees, mounting a fresh attack on the Narendra Modi government over its decision to sell the public sector lender to Canadian company Fairfax and questioning why an institution that had returned to profitability after years of financial distress should be handed over to private ownership.
Drawing a sharp contrast between the Congress and BJP governments' approaches towards public sector institutions, Gandhi accused the Modi government of reversing the nation-building philosophy under which public sector banks and financial institutions were established to support industrial growth and strengthen the economy. “Congress ke time pe bank bante thhe. Modi ke time mein bikte hain,” he said in a post on X, declaring, “Main IDBI Bank ke employees ke saath khada hoon” (I stand with the employees of IDBI Bank).
In a separate letter addressed to members of the IDBI Bank family and dated October 29, Gandhi recalled that a delegation of bank employees had met him at Parliament House in March last year and raised concerns over the proposed disinvestment. The employees had questioned why the government was seeking to sell an institution that they had worked hard to revive and restore to profitability.
Gandhi said he had subsequently raised the matter in the Lok Sabha, seeking an explanation from the government for its decision and assurances regarding the interests of employees and depositors. However, he alleged, the government had failed to provide a convincing justification for the proposed sale. “The government gave no reason. Now it has decided to sell IDBI Bank to Fairfax, a Canadian company,” he wrote.
Questioning the rationale behind the proposed privatisation, Gandhi cited the bank's financial recovery as evidence of the contribution made by its employees. Recalling that IDBI Bank had been incurring losses seven years ago but registered profits exceeding Rs 9,000 crore last year, he argued that the turnaround was the result of the workforce's commitment and hard work. “That turnaround is your work,” he told the employees.
Invoking the institution's history, Gandhi recalled that IDBI was originally established as a pioneering development financial institution to provide long-term financial support for India's industrialisation before subsequently transforming into a commercial bank. He maintained that an institution created with public money should continue to serve public interests rather than be treated as an asset available for disposal.
“An institution built with public money belongs to the public,” he asserted, pointing out that the government and the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) together hold approximately 95 per cent of IDBI Bank. Under the proposed transaction, their combined shareholding would fall to around 34 per cent, according to his letter.
Gandhi also questioned the government's commitment to an assurance given in Parliament in 2003 that the government would always retain at least 51 per cent ownership of IDBI. While acknowledging that the assurance might not have been incorporated into law, he said it nevertheless represented a political and institutional commitment to the people of the country. “A promise made to Parliament is a promise made to the people of India,” he said.
A major concern flagged by the Congress leader was the potential impact of privatisation on employees, particularly those belonging to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes. He warned that the safeguards associated with public sector employment, including reservation in recruitment, could cease to apply once the bank passed into private ownership.
“When IDBI is privately owned, reservation for SC, ST and OBC candidates will go with it,” Gandhi said, also expressing concern over what he described as the erosion of employees' service conditions and the weakening of institutional protections available to them.
Reiterating the Congress's opposition to what it regards as indiscriminate privatisation, Gandhi said his party supported a strong public sector functioning alongside private enterprise. Public sector banks, he argued, were not merely commercial assets but institutions that had played a vital role in nation-building by financing industrial development, generating employment and expanding financial inclusion.

“The Congress has always believed in a strong public sector working alongside the private sector. Public banks are not assets to be sold off, they are tools to build the nation,” he wrote.
The controversy comes amid the Centre's ongoing strategic disinvestment exercise involving IDBI Bank. The government and LIC, which together hold a majority stake in the lender, have been pursuing the sale of a substantial portion of their combined shareholding along with management control as part of the proposed privatisation. The move has triggered apprehensions among sections of the workforce over job security, service conditions, future recruitment policies and the bank's institutional character.
Gandhi assured the employees that the Congress would support their opposition to the proposed sale and their demands for protecting their rights and interests. “You asked me to stand with you. I stand with you in your fight today, and fully support all your legitimate demands,” he wrote, urging them to remain united and determined.
His intervention has given the proposed disinvestment a sharper political dimension, bringing the future of IDBI Bank into the wider Congress-BJP debate over the role of public sector institutions in the Indian economy. For the Congress, the issue goes beyond the transfer of ownership of a financial institution, touching upon public accountability, employment protections and the future of public banking as an instrument of economic development.
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Tags: #Rahul Gandhi backs IDBI bank employees# questions Modi govt’s move to sell lender to Fairfax
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