With numerous political and corporate opinions swarming over RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan’s tenure, internet is also abuzz with at least seven online petitions doing the rounds in support of a second term for him and have together garnered nearly 60,000 signatures so far.
On the other side of the debate, at least two petitions are making a case against extending Rajan’s term, but they have got relatively little support so far.
A noted economist and often hailed as the ‘James Bond’ of the central banking space, Rajan is currently at the centre of a debate on whether he would get an extension or not beyond his current three-year tenue ending in September.
Some sections of the ruling BJP have openly voiced their opposition to his continuance in the post, although top government functionaries have said that any decision would be taken only closer to the end of his term.
Vocal BJP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy has openly called for immediate sacking of Rajan, but the Government is yet to spell out its official stance.
Amid this continuing debate in the corridors of power and among business leaders -- many of whom want Rajan to be more forthcoming with interest rate cuts and less lethal on bad loans, but still in public utterances favour a second term for him -- the buzz is growing in the online space too.
Close to 60,000 people had signed petitions on online petition platform Change.Org at the last count, asking Prime Minister Narendra Modi to allow a second term to Rajan at RBI.
Within a month, at least seven petitions have been started on this platform.
“The consolidated number of signatures on these five petitions has reached nearly 60,000,” according to Change.Org.
One of the petitions started by Rajesh Palaria from Bengaluru has alone received 57,000 signatures.
“Raghuram Rajan has been doing a great job by balancing and maneuvering Indian economy through the populism which endangers it. He is very crucial for India’s growth story now,” said his petition.