Bhubaneswar : Four BJD parliamentarians from Odisha, led by Rajya Sabha MP Prasanna Acharya, on Wednesday called on Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in New Delhi and sought release of Rs 545 crore deposited by the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) at Yes Bank.
Kandhamal MP Dr Achyuta Samanta, Rajya Sabha MPs Dr. Amar Patnaik and Dr. Sasmit Patra accompanied Acharya and held discussion with Sitharaman for the early withdrawal of Puri Jagannath Temple funds from the crisis hit bank.
The BJD MPS also handed over a copy of the letter written by Odisha Finance Minister Niranjan Pujari to Sitharaman.
The Union Finance Minister has assured the MPs over the safety of the money deposited in Yes Bank and the deposited will be released soon, Dr Samanta tweeted after the meeting.
Met the Hon'ble FM Smt @nsitharaman Ji to discuss the early withdrawal of Puri #JagannathTemple funds from #YesBank with BJD Parliament colleagues @sasmitpatra @Amar4Odisha & @prasana_acharya
FM assured that the money is safe & will be released as soon as the crisis is handled. pic.twitter.com/U5en6CimJ8— Achyuta Samanta (@achyuta_samanta) March 11, 2020
An amount of Rs 545 crore was deposited with Yes Bank, Puri in shape of TDRs ( Term deposits)that would mature in March 2020.
On Sunday, Odisha Finance Minister had written to Union Finance Minister requesting her to issue instructions to RBI to allow Puri Jagannath Temple administration to withdraw the temple’s fund of Rs 545 crore from the crisis-hit Yes Bank.
On Saturday, the Jagannath temple administration had written a similar letter to RBI’s regional branch in Bhubaneswar, urging them to facilitate smooth withdrawal of Rs 545 crore from the Yes Bank.
Earlier, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had said that a moratorium has been imposed on Yes Bank, stressing that the bank’s financial capability has undergone a steady decline largely due to the inability of the bank to raise capital. During the period of moratorium, the Yes Bank Ltd will not, without the permission in writing of the RBI, make payment to a depositor of a sum exceeding Rs 50,000 lying to his credit in any savings, current or any other deposit account.
Ms Kalinga