Mangaluru, Apr 09, 2019: A few retired officers of the now merged Vijaya Bank have claimed that the merger process of the bank was initiated during the tenure of the erstwhile UPA government.
Speaking to reporters here on April 9, Tuesday, Balappa Shetty, a retired officer of the bank alleged that the Congress was now speaking in favour of Vijaya Bank mainly with the intention of garnering votes though it was the government led by the Congress which started the merger process.
He also alleged that neither Oscar Fernandes nor Veerappa Moily who were then ministers had spoken against the proposal.
Referring to the assurance of Congress candidate Mithun Rai to strive to ensure that Vijaya Bank retains its existence, if the Congress comes to power, Shetty said this was impossible.
Retired officers of the Bank Mohan Shetty, Ramakrishna Shetty, Somanath Shetty and Jayanth Shetty were present.