SBI succumbing to US pressure: BEFI

Kolkata, Dec 1: Alleging that the State Bank of India had succumbed to US pressure by refusing to honour Letter of Credits issued from Iran, Bank Employees Federation of India (BEFI) today demanded that the decision be reversed.

In a statement, BEFI said the stand of SBI was a manifestation of the impact of Indo-US nuclear deal even before operationalisation of the agreement.

" The position of Iran in the context of bilateral trade with India is very important. Iran is one of the major importers of Indian tea. Indian commercial and other products have got a sizable persence in Iranian market," the statement said.

It alleged that for the past several years there was a concerted move on the part of US imperialism to make India its junior partner.

"It is unfortunate that the Central Government, be it under the NDA or the UPA is becoming more and more inclined to adhere to the dictates of United states," it said.

UNI