Rexit and the common man

Often called the ‘rockstar’ governor, RBI chief Raghuram Rajan announced that he will not be taking up a second term after his current three-year tenure comes to an end in September. Rajan’s impending departure created ripples across social networking websites, with the term ‘Rexit’ being coined specially for the news. While he had the backing of industry bigwigs, Rajan was equally popular with the common man. We ask celebrities what made Rajan a much-loved figure.

Gigi Scaria, artist: He was not narrow visioned

I  don’t have much understanding of how the RBI functions and the key roles of the institution, but I am in favour of giving Raghuram Rajan a second term. He has always voiced his unbiased opinion on important social issues pertinent to the social fabric of this country. The policies he proposed were more focused on keeping the low inflation rate by keeping interest rate high, which were for the benefits of the common man. For a commoner like me, he comes across as a person who is not blinded by narrow vision.

Bejoy Nambiar, filmmaker: Logical reasoning to all his decisions

I think it is the policies that Raghuram Rajan brought in that made him popular among common people. It’s a known fact that he formulated all those policies, standing strong, despite so much opposition from many people. I was quite disappointed after hearing that he does not want to continue. I was following him ever since he came to power. And I’ve been a big fan of his because of his policies.  I got an opportunity to hear him speak thrice and on one occasion I even met him personally, but all I managed to say was ‘hello’.

It was after he became the governor of RBI that I, along with the major share of common people, came to know more about such a position and how economic policies are being planned and controlled by someone like him.  He has logical reasons for everything that he brought in. He should have been asked to continue for a secodnd term.

Anuvab Pal, comedian: Rajan good for country’s image

We’ve never had an RBI Governor who was good looking and popular with the masses in a long time. I’m not saying that the previous RBI Governors, like S. Venkitaramanan, Duvvuri       Subbarao, weren’t any good; each of them were good at their job but Raghuram was perfect for the role. A general demand from us commoners is to lower the interest rate. But I think he knew better and undertook actions for the economy. I think he was good for our country’s image.

Sharmila Mukherjee, Odissi exponent and dance guru: Rajan certainly deserved a second term

Raghuram Rajan has done a lot for the common masses. He has brought the level of inflation down, helped exports boom and even cleaned up the banks for us, going on to become an international name. He was good at his job and that’s why he has become a household name. I think he certainly deserves a second term.

Elahe Hiptoola, producer: Unfortunate that we’re losing Rajan because of petty allegations

Raghuram Rajan was chosen for such a high post because he had the credentials and the ability to perform well. Then you have these silly, petty and childish allegations coming from an equally high up member in the political scenario, who was casting doubts on his sincerity and his qualifications. He was being singled out for something that he has no control over. They said things like ‘you are not completely Indian because you hold a green card’. It’s not like they didn’t know that when he was being appointed in the first place.  It is unfortunate that India should lose a qualified individual with integrity because of such petty allegations.

If Rajan has now become such a common household name, we have only Rajan himself to thank for it; otherwise we don’t even recognize other people’s signatures on our currency. One would like to help serve the nation as long as their own livelihood is not being troubled to such an extent. It was Rajan’s choice to stand up and say ‘enough, I was not in it for this’. And people like him can afford to wish to do something else. They can go and get a more peaceful job. But it is sad because the country then suffers for the  lack of visionaries. Nobody wants a job that’s such a headache.