Central Bank Boss Quits Amid Spat With Government

The head of India’s central bank announced his resignation on Monday following a public spat with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration about government interference.

Urjit Patel cited “personal reasons” for his decision but media reports have said that he was annoyed by repeated government efforts to influence central bank policy.

The government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has disagreed with some of the central bank’s decisions under Patel, including a move to restrict lending by debt-ridden banks.

Government officials said the central bank had excess reserves that should be transferred to the treasury.

Modi’s government issued a sweeping demonetization order in 2017 to try to reduce black-market dealings. But a central bank report in August showed that most of the currency banned by the order had been deposited into various banks, undermining that move.