74-yr-old PMC Bank depositor dies of cardiac arrest
Andrew Lobo, 74, became the ninth depositor of Punjab and Maharashtra Co-operative (PMC) Bank who died, following restrictions imposed on the fraud-hit bank by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Lobo died at his home in Thane on October 31. “Two months ago it was found that his lungs were failing and he was really tense as he could not access his money from the bank for treatment.
Andrew Lobo, 74, became the ninth depositor of Punjab and Maharashtra Co-operative (PMC) Bank who died, following restrictions imposed on the fraud-hit bank by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
Lobo died at his home in Thane on October 31.
“Two months ago it was found that his lungs were failing and he was really tense as he could not access his money from the bank for treatment. He could not take the stress and succumbed to a cardiac arrest last week,” said Chris Mascerenhas, 23, Lobo’s relative.
Lobo had sold his business a few years ago and parked the proceeds in the crisis-hit bank, his relatives said.
Masceranhas said that Lobo and his wife, Hilda, 69, did not have any children and had no other source of income other than the money deposited in PMC Bank.
Lobo had savings of around ₹32-35 lakh in PMC Bank.
“Lobo had also sold his house in Mulund, deposited the sale proceeds in PMC Bank and shifted to Thane. So all his life savings were in the bank,” said Mascerenhas.
The RBI had imposed a daily withdrawal limit of ₹1,000 on September 23 and subsequently, the cap was raised.
At present, depositors can withdraw up to ₹40,000 over six months. Restrictions were imposed on PMC Bank after a ₹4,355-crore fraud at the bank came to light. It was found that the bank’s officials had loaned 73% of the bank’s total loan book to the Mumbai-based Housing Development and Infrastructure Ltd (HDIL).
The first depositor to pass away after the fraud was uncovered was Sanjay Gulati, 51, a former Jet Airways employee, who had a heart attack hours after attending a PMC Bank protest. His family claimed that he had died owing to stress after the withdrawal caps were imposed.
Another depositor, Fattomal Punjabi, 56, died of cardiac arrest, and Nivedita Bijlani, 39, a medical professional, committed suicide. However, HT could not independently confirm whether Punjabi and Bijlani’s deaths were attributed to the crisis at the bank.
Muralidhar Dharra, 83, an account-holder in the bank’s Mulund branch, died after failing to raise funds for his bypass surgery. Dharra was a cardiac patient, and his family said they needed money for medical procedures, which they could not access owing to the withdrawal caps.
Two more PMC Bank depositors, Kuldeep Kaur Vig, 64, and Ranjeet Puri, 43, also allegedly died of cardiac arrests earlier this month. Both Vig and Puri’s families have blamed the ongoing crisis for their deaths.
Another PMC Bank depositor, Kesumal Hinduja, 68, died on October 31, owing to a cardiac arrest.
However, his family said his death had no relation to the crisis.
Bharti Sadarangani, 73, also died of a cardiac arrest, but her family denied any connections to the crisis at PMC Bank