29/05/2025
"The Law Was Changed...
Just to Remove One Man:
The Talwar Amendment"
Truth, Replayed. 🫵
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Imagine you're so honest, so committed to your principles…
..that the government changes national law just to fire you.
This isn't fiction.
This is the story of R.K. Talwar and the infamous Talwar Amendment.
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🧑💼 Who Was R.K. Talwar?
Rameshwar Nath Talwar — or R.K. Talwar — was no ordinary banker.
As the Chairman of State Bank of India in the 1970s, he was respected for his deep commitment to ethics, rules, and public accountability. He believed:
> “A bank doesn't serve the powerful. It serves the people.”
He was known to approve or deny loans only based on merit, not pressure.
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🏛️ Background: India Under Emergency
In 1975, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi declared a state of Emergency, suspending civil rights and centralizing power.
Her son, Sanjay Gandhi, though unelected, had become a key figure in running the country — with immense influence over administration and business.
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💼 The Conflict Begins
Sanjay Gandhi wanted a large loan approved by SBI for a company linked to his circle.
Talwar examined the case and refused.
The company was in poor financial health.
It had misused previous loans.
And it didn’t meet banking norms.
Talwar said NO.
And this decision would change everything.
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⚖️ The Government Pushes Back
Talwar’s refusal was seen as insubordination — a challenge to the growing autocracy of Sanjay Gandhi and Indira’s Emergency regime.
But here's the twist:
The SBI Chairman couldn’t be removed easily.
Why?
Because the SBI Act, 1955, offered the Chairman strong legal protection. He could only be removed under specific conditions.
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🧨 The Talwar Amendment
The government had a choice:
1. Respect the law,
2. Or change it.
And they chose the second.
📜 In 1976, the Parliament amended the SBI Act.
This amendment gave the Central Government the direct power to remove the SBI Chairman, without needing to give any specific reason.
With the new power in hand, Talwar was forced to resign.
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🧠 What the Amendment Meant
This was more than removing one man.
It was a signal — that no institution was safe from political interference, not even the largest public bank.
This event came to be known as the “Talwar Amendment.”
It sets a precedent: when power is questioned, the rules can be rewritten.
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🕯️ Talwar's Quiet Exit
Talwar did not hold a press conference.
He did not write a tell-all book.
He quietly stepped away, with his dignity and principles intact.
But what he stood for — integrity in public office — has only grown more important with time.
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📣 Final Lines (Call to Action)
The Talwar Amendment was not just a change in law.
It was a moment when power rewrote the rules to silence professionalism.
🫵 And that’s why you must remember it.
Because those who forget the past... are often ruled by its mistakes.
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