Is KV Kamath going to replace Nirmala Sitharaman?

Now that the lockdown 5 or Unlock 1 is underway the next challenge for PM Modi is to bring the economy back on track. He seems to be meeting multiple people to fix the lag created by the Coronavirus pandemic.

Rumour mills are abuzz in the Capital that the present FM Nirmala Sitharaman may get replaced by a new one i.e. Kundapur Vaman Kamath or K.V Kamath. He is seen as a front-runner in the race for the choice of next Finance Minister keeping Nirmala Sitharaman as an option too.

PM Modi’s second term has not been great in the economic front hence there is an urgent need to address this issue and present times provide an opportunity for the economic revival.

Professional Background

The 72-year-old, was born on Dec.2 1947 in Mangalore. Post his mechanical Engineering he completed his management degree from IIM Ahmedabad. He joined the Asian Development Bank ( ADB) in the private sector department in the year 1988. He returned to India in 1996 and joined ICICI as its MD and CEO. Under Kamath’s leadership, ICICI expanded beyond boundaries and became India’s first ‘universal bank’.

After he retired from the post of MD and CEO, he served as the non-Executive Chairman from 2009 to 2015. He also worked with Infosys Ltd. as the Chairman, World Economic Forum as the Co-Chair, and Schlumberger Limited as a member of the board. KV Kamath has received numerous awards but the most prestigious has been the Padma Bhushan, one of India’s highest civilian honours. Very recently he retired from the post of Chairman of New Development Bank of BRICS countries after completing his tenure.

But all is not well with Kamath’s history. CBI and ED is waiting to interrogate KV Kamath in 2 bank loan fraud cases. The first one being the case involving the NDTV promoter Prannoy Roy, who siphoned almost 40 crores. This was recorded during the tenure of Congress-led government and Chidambaram being the Finance Minister then. The second case being the very recent Chanda Kochchar’s loan.

If the rumours are to be believed, Kamath has been a close aid to Ambani’s. He is said to have lent a huge amount of money to Dhirubhai Ambani and also played a pivotal role in the division of assets between the Ambani brothers. It’s quite possible that Ambani might push for the name of Kamath for this post.

The Million Dollar Question

Kamath, a non-politician with huge experience in the financial world like Dr. Manmohan Singh, brings a lot to the table. The banker on whom many technology and business leaders bank on, can prove to be a game-changer for the Modi government. He played a pivotal role in setting up the New Development Bank from scratch.

The question is will PM Modi rely upon the experience of KV Kamath to bring the Indian economy back on track or will he hold on to Nirmala Sitharaman to avoid the backlash from the opposition due to his tainted history?