Gave a Re 1 coin to Urjit when I handed over charge: Rajan

“The RBI Governor is the risk manager of the economy, he is not a bureaucrat. In carrying out that duty, the RBI head sometimes has to say no. Bureaucrats can’t say no, and that’s the key difference in the role,” said Rajan. Clearing the air on all the speculation regarding influence from the Centre, Rajan said he had fair amount of freedom with both the governments. “There was no interference. To give an example, at IMF, you can give advice, but at RBI you make decision. As an economist, I felt like a kid in a candy shop during my times at RBI,” he explained. 

Rajan was full of praise for his successor Urjit Patel for setting up the Monetary Policy committee, which Rajan says he intended to do. He said that he gave Urjit Patel a memento of one rupee with slogan “Hamari Zimmedari” when he handed over the responsibility as RBI Governor to the latter, to underscore the role of RBI. 

Rajan’s father R Govindarajan and his mother Mythili, who live in the city were also present at the event. Even as the son had taken stage, the elderly unassuming Tamilian couple walked in without much fanfare. Immediately after the event, Rajan was mobbed by admirers and as he posed for selfies and embarked on an autograph spree, his proud parents quietly seemed to watch the affection showered on the former RBI honcho, though they stayed away from the media glare. Among those he acknowledged were former RBI governor C Rangarajan and former NSA MK Narayanan.