JOGENDRA NAMA Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The three writ petitioners, who are village artisan, blacksmith and craftsman serially, pray for an appropriate writ cancelling the 'Loan Mela' now in operation in the State of Tripura, restraining the respondents from acting upon the loan application forms distributed by the Congress (I) party, and prohibiting the respondents from proceeding further with the 'Loan Mela' and from distributing further loan application forms by the Congress (I) party and/or any other appropriate orders or directions. They have impleaded as respondents, the Union of India, the Reserve Bank of India, the Indian National Congress (Congress-I), hereinafter referred to as 'Congress (I)', and II nationalised commercial banks, which are wholly owned by the Central Government and the Tripura Gramin Bank.

(2.) The Reserve Bank of India, shortly the RBI, it is stated, earlier formulated three schemes for advancing loans to the weaker sections of the community for upliftment of their economic standard, namely, (1) Integrated Rural Development Programme (IRDP) ; (2) Self Employment for Urban Poor (Sepup); (3) Self Employment for Educated Unemployed Youth (SEEUY), and they are being implemented by all the bank branches throughout Tripura. About 45,000 sponsored proposals in the schemes are pending for disposal by payment of loans at different banks in Tripura.

(3.) While the above 45,000 sponsored applications are still so pending, the United Bank of India formulated another scheme called Accelerated Credit Programme (ACP) but there is nothing to indicate that the Reserve Bank of India approved it. It was subsequently re-named as Cash Credit Delivery Programme (CCDP) and its contents and procedure were finalised on 21-9-87 in a meeting of several participating banks, namely, United Bank of India, UCO Bank, the State Bank of India. The major issues discussed/decided were as under :