The fact that the mainstream media is unaware of the workings of the cooperative sector is well known. However, attempts to vilify the entire sector at the very first opportunity are indeed condemnable.
Something similar happened recently in the wake of the New Indian Cooperative Bank scandal when a leading publication cast aspersions on some of the top-notch urban cooperative banks.
These banks have built strong reputations, earned recognition, and even received awards from Union Minister Amit Shah for their successful operations spanning over a century.
An inaccurate report published in the said daily stirred controversy within the cooperative banking sector, leading to widespread criticism from major Urban Cooperative Banks (UCBs). Pushed onto the backfoot, the daily had to temper its overenthusiasm with a clarification piece ending with, “The error is regretted.”
The controversy has reignited concerns about the unfair targeting of the cooperative banking sector. When fraud occurs in private or public sector banks, blame is typically confined to the specific institution involved. However, when a scam takes place in a cooperative bank, the entire sector is often painted with the same brush, damaging the reputation of numerous well-functioning banks.
While it is true that some cooperative banks may face management issues, it is unjust to assume that all are mismanaged. Most UCBs have been operating efficiently, catering to the financial needs of small businesses, low-income individuals, and the economically weaker sections of society.
The issue began on February 20, 2025, when the said publication released an article titled “Scam Storm in Cooperative Banks.” The report alleged financial irregularities in multiple cooperative banks, including three prominent UCBs in Maharashtra.
However, contrary to the claims, these banks had no involvement in any scam, nor had they been subjected to any restrictions by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) due to financial mismanagement. Following the publication of the report, the named banks issued a public notice condemning the false allegations.
The banks further demanded an unconditional apology from the publication in the next edition, warning of legal action for defamation if their demand was not met. Following the backlash, the publication expressed regret.
The incident serves as a reminder that media reporting should be responsible, fact-checked, and balanced, ensuring that institutions that uphold financial integrity are not unfairly tarnished.
Financial institutions are run on complete faith by cusomers and stake hoders. If this element.is strained there us bound to be chaos. Therefore, it is important that media plays a very responsible role. Any irresponsible article, without proper investigation and proof can be seen as a vengence activity against the ethos of the media. Exercise a lot of RESTRAIN.
Media should do preliminary inquiry before publishing. People trust the media and they should live upto their expectation , Media should refrain from Vindictive agenda
I fully agree with the views expressed in this article.. As a working journalist I have been closely associated with many Urban Co Operative Banks and contributed to the efforts of creating good image of this sector.. inspite of suffering a personal huge shock from New India Co op. Bank..
It’s unfair to blame every co operative bank generally this banks are targeted due to previous history of co operative banks but now these banks are under proper control of rbi But I think RBi should alert customers regarding financial health of banks
Bank deposit insurance should be 1 cr also align bank should be megec with any other bank kto safeguard interest of depositors
Recently RBI merged national co op bank of.karnataka with cosmos co op bank this sector needs more stringent checks and balances
Publication of Quarterly financial results be made compulsory for UCBs having deposits over Rs.500 CRs. This will give alerts to all stake holders.The forms can be designed by RBI.
I am a bit surprised that RBI as regulator has kept quiet rather than come out strongly in support of these UCB’s whose reputation has been harmed and there has been panic among its depositors. IF RBI claims it is the regulator and expected to do its job of strict regulation, and of course would be having a better understanding of the financial position of these UCB’s which were unfairly targetted, it ought to have steemmed the panic, since a run on any of these banks could have come during the weekend which could have resulted in its collapse too. Lot of small depositors have panicked in the last few days with the publishing of the report and have withdrawn money. RBi even now has turned silent and still have not come with a statement which still gives room for doubts as to what is the actual situation.The Ministry of Finance as well as Ministry handling Cooperatives need to take note of RBI’s failing and heads to roll if the media published story is false.
This type of information by reputed papers vanishling the hard work done by bank. (Mangement and HARD WORKED DONE BY MEMEBER OF BANK AND STAFF ). He must be punished.