TNCC president Manickam Tagore opposes proposed charges on Jan Dhan account withdrawals

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Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) president B. Manickam Tagore on Saturday (August 22, 2026) alleged that the Union government was planning to burden poor and ordinary bank account holders by imposing charges on withdrawals from basic savings accounts, and demanded that the proposed fee be withdrawn.

In a statement, Mr. Tagore said banks had decided to levy a penalty of ₹15, plus 18% GST, on withdrawals made more than four times a month from such accounts, including through ATMs. He said the State Bank of India had announced that the charge would amount to ₹17.70 per transaction and would come into effect from October 1.

He claimed that the Reserve Bank of India had approved the move and that other banks could follow SBI’s decision.

Mr. Tagore said basic banking accounts for the poor were introduced in 2005 during the Manmohan Singh government under the ‘No Frills Account’ initiative, which was later renamed as the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana by the BJP-led government. Of the nearly 56 crore such accounts, he claimed, about 53 crore had been opened through public sector banks.

The Congress MP also criticised the government's approach to digital payments, alleging that the proposed charges could push people without reliable access to the internet or electricity back towards cash transactions.

He said cash circulation had risen from around ₹9 lakh crore in January 2017 to ₹43 lakh crore currently, despite the government's push for digital transactions following demonetisation in 2016.

Mr. Tagore further alleged that banks had waived loans worth ₹16 lakh crore for large business groups over the past decade while seeking to impose charges on withdrawals by poor account holders.

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