Arun Jaitley warns of ‘dire consequences’ to borrowers not returning money, unethical businesses

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Saturday warned borrowers who do not return money to lenders with dire consequences, saying that the unethical practice of not returning money has to stop and that tighter laws will be in place soon. “The old concept that the money that has been borrowed may or may not be returned has to end now. The law would be tightened to ensure criminal acts in business punished wherever the culprit is,” Arun Jaitley said at an event.

The Finance Minister, speaking in the context of the Rs 11,400 crore fraud at the Punjab National Bank, once again flagged the role of regulators, auditors, and bankers in letting it go unnoticed for a long time. “If a fraud is taking place in various branches of the banking system and not one employee raised a red flag, auditors looked the other way or did a casual job and the management remained unaware, it is worrisome for the country,” he said.

As India made a big leap on the Ease of Doing Business index to top 100 last year, Arun Jaitley said that it is not only government’s responsibility, but that of business too. He said that the country is needed to move from the ease of doing business to the habit of doing ethical business.