Government-owned Union Bank on Tuesday said it is probing lapses in the procurement of close to 2 lakh books titled ‘India@100: Envisioning Tomorrow’s Economic Powerhouse’ written by former International Monetary Fund (IMF) executive director K.V. Subramanian and valued at about ₹7.25 crore.

Notably, the bank’s probe comes at a time the government of India has terminated the services of Subramanian, six months ahead of his three-year tenure.

“The bank has made the said procurement. However, there were certain lapses in the procurement, which are being examined by the bank,” Union Bank has said in a stock exchange filing on Tuesday. At ₹118.35, the bank’s shares were down 6.18 per cent on the Bombay Stock Exchange.

The exchange filing came after it was reported that Union Bank ordered the copies of the book for distribution through the bank’s zonal and regional offices, as part of its centenary-linked initiatives to promote economic awareness. However, the book’s purchase has raised concerns over its necessity and the use of public money.

The decision of the government-owned bank drew flak from the Congress, with the party claiming the government had suddenly terminated Subramanian’s position due to “impropriety”, and raised questions of “wastage of public money”, with no reason given by the government on the abrupt and rare sacking.

Citing internal documents of the public sector bank, Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate claimed these books were meant to be distributed through zonal and regional offices of the Union Bank of India to schools, colleges and libraries. Each of the bank’s 18 zonal offices was meant to receive 10,525 copies, she alleged.

“But it now seems that hard evidence has left the government embarrassed and forced his premature removal from the post of India’s executive director at the IMF, six months before the completion of his three-year term,” she claimed.

It is also alleged that Subramanian used his official position to pressure some institutions to purchase his book.

The All India Bank Employees’ Association (AIBEA) has also reportedly called for a probe into “wasteful expenditure” by Union Bank.

The appointment and termination of any member on the executive board of the IMF, comprising 25 directors, is a decision that is made by the member countries. Following Subramanian’s termination, Parameswaran Iyer, executive director at the World Bank, has been temporarily entrusted with the responsibility of being India’s nominee director on the board of the IMF ahead of a May 9 meeting.

Subramanian was appointed as the executive director (India) at the IMF with effect from November 1, 2022, for a period of three years. Prior to this, he has served as the chief economic adviser to the government.