PUDUKKOTTAI: Two private finance companies in Adhanakottai have allegedly defaced the walls of a house belonging to two loan defaulters, marking it as a pawned property and publicly displaying the outstanding amounts.
The victims, B Sakthivel and his brother B Muthukumar, who took loans from different finance companies to manage agricultural and cattle-rearing expenses, said this illegal action by the companies has caused them severe emotional distress and social embarrassment.
A complaint regarding this has been filed at Udaiyalipatti police station. Sakthivel had borrowed Rs 7.5 lakh from a company on the condition to repay Rs 14,000 per month. However, due to his mother’s ill health, he was unable to repay the amount for the last three months.
Sakthivel said “The markings on my house have left me ashamed. I haven’t been able to face my relatives or neighbours for the past month.”
His brother Muthukumar had borrowed Rs 10 lakh from another company and regularly paid back Rs 17,000 each for over 15 months. “I couldn’t pay the amount for the past three months. Despite my consistent payment history, they publicly humiliated me,” he said.
Legal experts have condemned the firms’ actions, which, they say, violate RBI guidelines on fair recovery practices.
Attempts to contact local authorities were unsuccessful. State-level representatives from the finance firms denied the allegations, claiming that such actions were against their policies. They have assured an internal investigation into the matter.