Guj: Villagers shut down 2 banks over Rs 2k withdrawal ceiling

Hundreds of agitated residents from Akariya and neighbouring villages forced closure of operations Dena Bank and State Bank of India branches.

Ahmedabad, Dec 19: Angered by the refusal of officials to dispense more than Rs 2000 to each account holder seeking withdrawal, anxious people forced closure of operations at two banks at Akariya village in Amreli district on Monday, police said. Hundreds of agitated residents from Akariya and neighbouring villages gheraoed Dena Bank and State Bank of India branches and forced closure of operations by locking them before the police stepped in.

"We received a call from the banks saying that a large number of villagers had gathered outside the offices of the two banks and locked the banks after they expressed helplessness to give them more than Rs 2000 to each account holder," said a police official at Amreli taluka police station.

However, it is not clear whether the staff of banks was locked inside. No untoward incident occurred as police brought the situation under control. The banks were opened after some time by the police and business resumed, he said. No formal complaint was lodged with police in this regard.

PTI