It’s not just the government that seems to have problems with the RBI governor. A large section of senior bankers has been unhappy with Urjit Patel for a long time because of his inflexibility on norms for recognising bad loans which they say do not factor in ground realities and have made it difficult for banks to do business. People close to Patel, however, dismiss this as resistance to his efforts to clean up the banking industry. Apart from differences over substance several senior bankers seem to have a problem with Patel’s style. He barely meets us for consultation and feedback. Previous RBI governors, even Rajan, tapped the chairmen of top banks as sounding boards for what was happening in the economy. But there’s almost no communication between us and him, said a very senior banker. Patel’s supporters, on the other hand, say the governor communicates as and when necessary. He doesn’t believe in schmoozing, said one of them.
RBI vs govt: Senior bankers too unhappy with Urjit Patel
