Maharashtra based Pune People’s Cooperative Bank’s elections are slated for 28th August, in which 28 candidates are in the fray for 13 board seats. Two panels namely the Utkarsha Panel and the Sahakar panels have fielded 13 candidates each. Two candidates are contesting the elections independently.
The Utkarsha panel is led by the outgoing President Subhash Mohite and the Sahakar panel headed by Dilip who is also on the board of Shri Sant Tukaram Sahakari Sakhar Karkhana.
While talking to Indian Cooperative, the opposition panel’s Presidential candidate Dilip said that the bank has become a personal fiefdom of two-three people’s including the outgoing President Subhash Mohite, former President of the bank CA Janardan Randive and others.
Replying to his comment, Mohite said, “It is wrong to say that the bank is our personal property. The board members have been choosing us for the top post and it is true that we are holding the top post but the decisions in regard to the bank are only taken with the board’s approval. Dilip is not having any banking experience and is making false comments”.
“For several years the bank’s new head office building has been under construction but it is yet to be completed. In their tenure the bank failed to make the expected growth”, Dilip charged.
Mohite added, “Due to several reasons, the bank’s new head office construction got delayed but we are sure if we again get elected we will complete it in a couple of months. And the bank is growing well on all parameters. We believe in strong and steady growth. At present, the business of the bank is more than Rs 2000 crore”, he informed.
Dilip failed to make any allegations related to misappropriation of funds and mismanagement against the board but claimed to win the elections with full majority.
It is reported that 43 nominations were filed till the last date and four were cancelled during the scrutiny. And 11 candidates withdrew their names. There are 23k eligible voters.
District Deputy Registrar (Rural) Milind Sobale has been appointed as the returning officer to oversee the election process.