Businessman lodges FIR against bank for not accepting coins

A businessman in Balurghat lodged an FIR with local police against a national bank for not accepting coins of Re 1 and Rs 2.

Abhijit Roy, the businessman, recently had gone to a bank branch to deposit Rs 2,400 all in Re 1 and Rs 2 – which the branch had refused to accept. The branch allegedly did not give any explanation for not accepting the coins and told the businessman to come back with currency notes. The businessman said that he was compelled to receive packs of coins from his customers during demonetisation when people were struggling to get new currency notes.

The bank officials were not convinced by the reasons that he had given to them and told him to talk to the branch manager.

The businessman had gone to a police station to lodge an FIR against the bank branch after the branch manager did not cooperate with him. "I am only a stationary shop owner. People requested me to receive coins during demonetisation and I had accepted these coins to help them out. Now, the bank is refusing to accept these coins. I am really helpless," said Roy. The district police started an overall investigation after getting a verbal complaint from the local people that many shopkeepers in the markets and roadside outlets are not receiving coins of Re 1 and Rs 2. The complainants informed the police that these shopkeepers not only refused to accept the coins but they are saying that these coins will be soon be demonetised. So stocking coins makes no sense to them. It will be recalled that recently similar allegations came from Alipurduar, East and West Midnapore too.