Better late than never, RBI Governor finally defending bank from Modi: Rahul
New Delhi, Oct 29: Congress president Rahul Gandhi said Monday it is nice to see RBI Governor Urjit Patel "finally defending" the central bank from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and noted that the country will never allow the BJP-RSS combine to "capture" institutions.
He said it was not too late for the RBI governor to stand in defence of the Reserve Bank of India, after reports said there was a rift between Patel And 'Team Modi'.
"Nice that Mr Patel is finally defending the RBI from 'Mr 56'. Better late than never (sic). India will never allow the BJP/ RSS to capture our institutions," Gandhi said on Twitter.
Former finance minister and Congress leader P Chidambaram said there must have been some grave reason why RBI Deputy Governor Viral Acharya pitched for "effective independence" of the bank and, in the footnote, said he is grateful to Patel for encouraging him to explore the subject.
"So I think the matter is serious enough and it'll be best if the RBI and the government don't talk across each other through lectures, we've had two already," he said.
Chidambaram said it would be better if the time-honoured practice of the finance minister and the governor of the RBI meet in private and discuss issues.
"We have done that in the past and it has worked well, why are people delivering lectures across each other I don't know," he said when asked about the controversy.
As per reports, the long-simmering discord between the central bank and the government is turning into a very public brawl. Acharya in a hard-hitting speech Friday on central bank's independence startled his audience by invoking Argentina of 2010.
Acharya had said governments that do not respect central bank's independence would sooner or later incur the "wrath of financial markets, ignite economic fire and come to rue the day they undermined an important regulatory institution".
Amid instances of apparent differences between the government and the RBI, Acharya emphasised that undermining a central bank's independence is akin to committing a "self goal" for any government.
Delivering the A D Shroff Memorial Lecture, he said, "What matters is the effective independence with which these powers (vested in the Acts governing the RBI or any central bank) can be exercised in practice."
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Like Rohit and Virat, Sanju can''t be replaced: Rajasthan Royals skipper Riyan Parag
Jaipur (PTI): Rajasthan Royals skipper Riyan Parag on Thursday said Sanju Samson's void cannot be filled in his side, likening the challenge to replacing stalwarts like Rohit Sharma or Virat Kohli.
Sanju, who led the Royals from 2021 to 2025, was traded to Chennai Super Kings in a pre-season move, with Ravindra Jadeja coming in as part of the deal.
"If you talk about Sanju bhaiya, we never think about replacing the kind of player he is," Parag told reporters in a pre-season press conference here.
"We can perhaps look for someone with a similar skillset or have someone bat in his position...
"It’s like there is no replacement for Virat Kohli or Rohit Sharma... In the same way, there is no replacement for Sanju bhaiya because he is such a good player,” Parag said.
Having represented the franchise for 11 years across two stints, Sanju was RR's most successful captain and leading run-scorer, having guided them to the IPL 2022 final and the playoffs in 2024.
His stature has only grown manifold following a stellar T20 World Cup campaign, where he struck three successive match-defining half-centuries to power India to a historic treble and title defence.
India defeated New Zealand by 96 runs in the final with Sanju being adjudged the Player-of-the-Tournament.
Rajasthan Royals had a forgettable last season, enduring 10 defeats to finish ninth in the 10=team standings.
Parag, who has been picked as the captain following Sanju's exit, said RR lost far too many close matches last year and the 2008 winners need better strategy and planning.
“This year, the focus is to plan better and finish games, which we couldn’t do in the previous edition," he said.
"We need to plan well. Last year, there were about 5-6 games which we lost in the last over or even on the last ball. Had we been able to convert those, or had we calculated better, this question (if RR would try anything new) would not have been asked because we would have qualified (for knockouts) by winning those matches," he said.
"I think that in every T20 game, there are 3-4 decisions that you have to make which change the course of the game. If we take those small decisions with strategy and planning, this year will be different," Parag added.
He further expressed his gratitude to the franchise for keeping their faith in him despite several seasons of struggle.
"I was here when I was just 17 and I have seen all the ups and downs, though more downs than ups till now. I want to thank Rajasthan Royals for supporting me and understanding the cricketer I am,” Parag said.
Sangakkara backs Parag -- the skipper
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The Royals’ director of cricket and head coach Kumar Sangakkara said he has always “admired” Parag as a cricketer and he was picked as a skipper after a robust round of interviews with other candidates.
"It was about trying to find the best person who can lead the Rajasthan Royals. I (first) met Riyan when he was a teenager and have admired him as a cricketer. He's right (when he says) he has gone through a lot and seen a lot," Sangakkara said.
"The most striking thing for me was (to see) how reflective and mature he has become."
“To select a captain once Sanju decided to leave, it was very important that we explore all options. We had shortlisted some candidates that we had a very strict interview process for. Riyan knows the questions were hard. At the end of the day Manoj (Badale) and I sat down and it was evident that the right choice to lead Rajasthan was Riyan,” Sangakkara added.
