By Admin 
Former Chief Minister of Odisha and currently Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Naveen Patnaik has written a letter to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday (May 2, 2026). In his letter, Naveen Patnaik has expressed concern and sorrow over the recent incident that occurred in Keonjhar district of Odisha, in which a tribal man went to the bank carrying the skeleton of his dead sister to withdraw money from her account.
What did Naveen Patnaik say in the letter to Nirmala Sitharaman?
The former Chief Minister said, ‘I am writing this letter with deep sorrow and a sense of extreme urgency, to bring to your notice a shocking incident that took place in the Malliposi branch of Odisha Gramya Bank located in Keonjhar district of the state.’ He said, ‘Jitu Munda, a tribal citizen, was forced to take his sister’s skeleton from the grave to the bank to provide proof of her death so that he could withdraw his legitimate cash from the account. This situation arose when he visited the bank several times, but he did not get any help from the officials.
BJD chief Naveen Patnaik writes to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
“I write this letter with a sense of deep anguish and urgency to highlight a shocking incident that took place on April 27th in the Malliposi branch of the Odisha Gramya Bank in Keonjhar… https://t.co/l7417QGTCd pic.twitter.com/zhwCJWR2Ct
— ANI (@ANI) May 2, 2026
Inhuman treatment done by citing RBI guidelines: Patnaik
He said, ‘What is even more shocking is that the bank tried to justify this inhuman behavior by citing RBI guidelines. This shows that bank officials, hiding behind procedures, are abandoning the very people whom it is their duty to serve. In a democracy, rules are meant to empower citizens, not to humiliate them. This horrific incident has hurt public sentiments across Odisha and has also attracted the attention of international media like New York Post, BBC.
Responsibility for serious negligence should be fixed: Patnaik
Leader of Opposition in Odisha Assembly Naveen Patnaik said, ‘This incident may be an isolated case, but it points us towards the need to implement a more humane banking system, especially in remote tribal areas. Therefore, first of all I urge you to immediately fix clear accountability for this serious negligence. This will send a clear message to all rural banks that citizen-centric service should be provided with sensitivity and empathy. He said that I am confident that with your intervention this type of inhumane behavior will not be repeated anywhere in the country in future.
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