Yes Bank audit panel chief quits board

Mumbai: Yes Bank independent director and chairman of the bank’s audit committee Uttam Prakash Agarwal resigned from the board amid a potential probe by the bank on whether he met the ‘fit and proper’ criteria set out by the Reserve Bank of India.

“The Bank was reviewing the ‘fit and proper’ status of Mr. Agarwal as directed by the Reserve Bank of India,” the bank said in a regulatory filing. “In this respect, the Bank had obtained legal opinions from eminent jurists. These opinions were to be considered by the Nomination and Remuneration Committee of the Board, the Board of the Bank in their meetings (on) January 10, 2020. However, prior to the commencement of the proceedings of these meetings, the Bank received the resignation of Mr. Agarwal.”

The management under chief executive Ravneet Gill has been facing obstacles in their cleanup efforts from some of the board members, including Agarwal, said people familiar with the matter. Amid complaints and counter-allegations between the two, the regulator stepped in with its own enquiry about Agarwal’s eligibility.


Agarwal, a chartered accountant by profession, has been on the bank’s board since November 14, 2018 and his term was until November 2023. He was also the chairman of the audit committee of the board after Vasant Gujarathi, the previous chairman quit in November 2018.

Agarwal is said to have raised concerns on critical matters and also wrote a dissent note regarding decisions taken on capital raising issues. These, however, were not made public by the bank. In the notice to stock exchanges, the bank said that its nomination and remuneration committee and the board have taken Agarwal’s resignation on record.