Over Rs 3,350-cr worth NPAs with Union Bank of India

Union Bank of India has Non- Performing Assets (NPAs) worth about Rs 3,350 crore from 20 defaulters.

Replying to an RTI query, the bank, however, declined to share the names of the defaulters citing "commercial confidence".

"List of the borrowers cannot be provided as they are of commercial confidence and exempted from disclosure under Section 8(1)(d) of the RTI Act.

"We inform you, however, that the amount involved in the top 20 NPA accounts as of December 31, 2013, is Rs 3,350.17 crore," the bank said.

The Section bars making public of information related to commercial confidence, trade secrets or intellectual property, the disclosure of which would harm the competitive position of a third party.

Exercising his Right to Information, Venkatesh Nayak had sought details of the top 20 borrowers responsible for NPA from five banks, including Union Bank of India.

The other four -- State Bank of India, Bank of India, Central Bank of India, Indian Overseas Bank -- declined to share information on the amount of NPAs and list of borrowers.

"The information cannot (be) provided as it is related to third party personal information and held by the bank in fiduciary relationship and exempted from disclosure," SBI said in its response to the RTI application.

BoI, too, cited the "third parties" clause to deny information on defaulters.

Central Bank of India said the information cannot be provided as it comes under "commercial confidence and personal information of the borrowers, which is exempted".

IOB said the information and details of the top 20 NPA borrower accounts with various details as to the property secured for the loans or credit limits sanctioned and value of such properties "formed the commercial confidence and is held in fiduciary relationship".

"The disclosure of information amounts to invasion of the privacy of the constituents and exempted," IOB said.

Nayak had earlier this year filed another set of RTI applications with Bank of Baroda, UCO Bank, Canara Bank, Punjab National Bank and State Bank of Mysore seeking the names of defaulters and details of NPAs.

The information was denied by all five banks.

"It is public money and depositors have all the right to know about it. The NPAs are being restructured. The names should be put in public domain. I have appealed against the banks' denial of information," said Nayak, who works with Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative, an NGO.