New Delhi: The Centre informed the Supreme Court on Tuesday that if it were to consider waiving interest on all the loans and advances to all categories of borrowers for the six-month moratorium period announced by RBI in view of COVID-19 pandemic, then the amount foregone would be more than Rs 6 lakh crore.
If the banks were to bear this burden, then it would necessarily wipe out a substantial and a major part of their net worth, rendering most of the lenders unviable and raising a very serious question mark over their very survival, it said.
A bench of Justices Ashok Bhushan, R S Reddy and M R Shah was informed by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, that this was one of the main reasons why a waiver of interest was not even contemplated and only payment of instalments was deferred.
The top court is hearing a batch of pleas of various bodies including from real estate and power-seeking sector-wise relief in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Reading from the written submission filed in the top court, Mehta said that if the interest is waived on all the loans and advances for the moratorium period, with regard to all classes and categories of borrowers, the amount to be foregone would be more than Rs 6 lakh crore.
