A recent RTI query on safe deposit lockers has secured a weird answer from the RBI and 19 public sector banks. The response to a query made under the Right to Information Act states banks are not responsible for the loss or robbery of any valuables from a personal locker. The response states that the relationship between customers who use bank lockers and the banks themselves is that of a landlord and a tenant. The banks which gave the response included Bank of India, Oriental Bank of Commerce, Punjab National Bank, United Commercial Bank and Canara Bank among others. A lawyer, who filed the RTI query, has now approached the Competition Commission of India stating the policy enumerated by the banks amounts to cartelization and anti-competitive practices.
