Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala Assembly on passed a resolution against the merger of State Bank of Travancore (SBT) with State Bank of India (SSBI), stating it would adversely affect the state’s economic growth.

The resolution, introduced by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, asked the Centre and Reserve Bank of India to rescind the decision to amalgamate state-based SBT with SBI.

However, the lone BJP member in the House, O Rajagopal, opposed the resolution, saying it had “political motives". The Congress and the Left parties are opposing the merger because of their hatred towards the Narendra Modi government, he said.

The chief minister said people of the state are viewing the merger development with anxiety. Speaking during the two-hour debate, Finance Minister T M Thomas Issac termed the BJP MLA’s attitude “narrow minded".

Rajagopal’s stand is against the state’s interest, he said.

The ruling CPI-M-led LDF and Congress-headed UDF Opposition supported the resolution. The resolution said SBT was the biggest bank in the state with 846 branches and ₹ 8,000 crore deposits. It said the Kerala government’s major transactions were also with the bank. SBT’s agriculture development loans have played a key role in the economic growth of the state, the resolution added.

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