Fairfax IDBI sale cleared, Finance Ministry says 2003 proposal invalid
The Finance Ministry just clarified a longstanding question about selling its stake in IDBI Bank.
After the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs green-lighted strategic restructuring of IDBI Bank Ltd. and decided to sell 60.72% of its shares to Fairfax Financial Holdings's subsidiary for ₹52,878.08 crore, the ministry explained that an old 2003 proposal to limit such sales was discussed but never actually became law.
Union government pushes bank privatization
That proposal came up during the Union Budget 2003, aiming to tweak rules around government ownership in IDBI Bank, but it didn't make it into the final law.
The Delhi High Court also looked at this issue back in 2018.
Fast forward to recent years, and the government has been openly pushing for more privatization of public sector banks as part of its economic plans.