Whistle-blowers in private sector banks should be brought under the Central Vigilance Commission to provide them protection, P.V. Mohanan, general secretary of the Dhanlaxmi Bank Officers’ Organisation (DBOO), and a senior manager of the bank, on whom termination notice was served recently.
Mr. Mohanan told The Hindu that termination of his service by the bank management was a vindictive action and an attempt to weaken the trade union, which has been trying to expose vested interests within the bank and whistle-blowing under the bank’s protected disclosure scheme.
The DBOO leaders are being harassed for disclosing misuse of authority by top management of the bank in a fraud in one of the Mumbai branches of the bank in 2013, said Mr. Mohanan, who is also the Kerala State president of the All India Bank Officers’ Confederation (AIBOC).
Mr. Mohan, who has 38 years of service in the bank, was served termination notice on June 11, 2015. The bank informed him that his services were being dispensed with under Clause 14 (i) under Chapter IV of the Dhanlaxmi Bank Limited Officers’ Service Regulations.
Abraham Shaji John, State secretary of AIBOC, said that the bank management had not cited any reason for terminating the services of Mr. Mohanan.
He termed termination of Mr. Mohanan’s service a clear breach of human rights. The bank served the notice on Mr. Mohanan when just eight months remained for his retirement.
“He was served the noticed as he spoke truth and the truth was inconvenient to the top management,” he said, and added that it was an attempt to weaken the trade union as it is standing for the rights of the officers.
The organisation, which has been observing indefinite strike for the past several days, has decided to intensify the agitation in the coming days seeking withdrawal of the termination order.
(Although The Hindu had sought the response of the Dhanlaxmi Bank management to the charges levelled against it by the DBOO leaders, no response was forthcoming even after several days.)
DBOO disclosed misuse of authority in a Mumbai fraud case
Alleges harassment by top management
