Bank violates RBI norms for deity’s wedding .....

Officials of Namli Central Bank thought it better to violate Reserve Bank of India (RBI) norms this time, as the couple for whose marriage the Kamravat community had approached them to allow withdrawal of `2.5 lakh, were deities themselves.

In Namli village of Ratlam district, marriage ceremony of the holy Tulsi (basil plant) with Lord Charbhuja Nath (Lord Vishnu) hit the roadblock when the bank refused to grant the cash withdrawal after

RATLAM: People from neighbouring villages also participated in the wedding ceremony of the deities. About 6,000 people attended the wedding and took part in the feast in Namli village of Ratlam district. RAJESH BHARAVA, community member

the community members had approached them with a wedding card as proof on Monday. The savings account in the deity’s name has `5.35 lakh in it.

Bank officials told them that the money can only be given to “parents of the bride and the groom, as per directions of Reserve Bank of India”.

The decision hurt religious sentiments of the villagers, who later informed the district collector, higher-ups of the bank officials and threatened to stage a demonstration and lodge a missing complaint of the deity’s parents with police.

Collector B Chandrashekhar and bank officials promised villagers a solution.

The bank officials then made eight fund transfers of `24,000 each to the accounts of eight members of the community, and asked them to use the total amount of `1.92 lakh to fund the ceremony.

Kumavat community convener Rajesh Bharava said, “People from neighbouring also villages participated in the ceremony. About 6,000 people took part in the feast.”