Advocate Prashant Bhushan
A representation by Prashant Bhushan, Senior Advocate, Supreme Court, has urged the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to intervene in the proposed re-appointment of Sandeep Bakhshi as Managing Director and CEO of ICICI Bank, citing alleged persistent regulatory violations, systemic governance failures, widespread frauds and egregious labour law violations.
In his representation, addressed to RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra, Bhushan alleged that the record of penalties imposed by the RBI itself during Bakhshi’s tenure is telling and cannot be brushed aside as isolated incidents. Referring to financial and other frauds, the SC advocate claimed that there were an alarming number of frauds, which reveal a breakdown of internal control mechanisms and supervisory failures at multiple levels.
“Numerous instances have emerged where bank officials, including branch managers and relationship managers, have siphoned off crores of rupees from customer accounts by manipulating records, changing registered mobile numbers, breaking fixed deposits without consent and diverting funds,” he stated.
Bhushan contended that the labour authorities specifically noted that the bank did not adhere to principles of natural justice, conducted no proper disciplinary inquiry as mandated under its own Code, and engaged in arbitrary and large-scale terminations, including declaring approximately 800 employees as “absconding”/stopped reporting within a span of five months (January 1, 2024, to June, 1, 2024), thereby raising serious doubts about the credibility of such claims.
Referring to media reports on mass terminations and employee harassment, he alleged that the available material suggests systemic misuse of mechanisms such as the work improvement plan (WIP), which appears to have been deployed not as a legitimate performance management tool, but as an instrument to deny promotions, increments and benefits, impose psychological pressure and compel employees to resign.
An email sent to ICICI Bank for its comments remained unanswered at press time.
Bakshi gets support
Reacting to Bhushan’s representation to RBI, TV Mohandas Pai, former CFO and Board Member at Infosys, posted on X: “...Very very unusual for a social activist to talk about Bank appointments. @RBI should ignore such vested interest and find out who is behind such activists.”
Vikas Khemani, Founder, Carnelian Asset Management & Advisors, posted on X : “...Sandeep (Bakhshi) has done fabulous job at @ICICIBank. He is humble, focussed, enabler and a great leader any organisation would love to have. Would rate him among Top 10 CEOs in the country.”
Published on April 29, 2026