Mumbai: The Reserve Bank on Monday cautioned the public against unauthorised and misleading campaigns promising loan waivers, and asked them to refrain from associating with such individuals or entities.
“RBI has observed, with serious concern, the continued occurrence of such campaigns, through various media channels and direct outreach, by certain individuals and entities,” the central bank said, reiterating a similar caution it had issued in December 2023.
Such campaigns not only mislead the general public but also interfere with the orderly functioning of the credit system of the country, it said.
These campaigns, among others, involve false promises of waiver of outstanding dues to banks/non-banking financial companies (NBFCs); issuance of ‘debt waiver certificates‘ or similar documents; and collection of fees under various pretexts, including service or legal charges, from the uninformed public.
“It is reiterated that any claims by individuals/entities offering such services are false, misleading, and liable to attract appropriate legal action under applicable statutes,” RBI said.
The Reserve Bank also emphasised that such activities undermine the stability of financial institutions, affect the interest of depositors, and engagement with such individuals/entities can result in direct financial loss.
“Members of the public are therefore requested to refrain from associating with or availing services from such individuals/entities and instead approach their lending institutions directly for any information related to their loans,” it said.
The RBI has advised the public to promptly report any such misleading campaigns to the appropriate law enforcement agencies.