MUMBAI : Government does not need money from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in the next six months, the finance minister said in a TV interview telecast on Friday, rejecting opposition charges the government was seeking access to the bank’s reserves to fund schemes ahead of the 2019 general election.
Critics accuse the government of trying to undermine the central bank’s authority, but Jaitley said his government respected the institution’s independence.
“We respect the autonomy (of the RBI) but, at the same time, if some sectors are starved of liquidity or credit, we will flag those issues. We do so with the RBI.”
The Congress has accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government of eyeing the cash reserves held by the RBI.
New Delhi has been pushing for access to RBI’s surplus reserves prompting the central bank’s board to form an expert panel to look into whether its cash pool is adequate.
