Guwahati | Assam Congress leader and former MLA Debabrata Saikia on Friday questioned the implementation of the state government’s announced six-month EMI moratorium for flood-affected borrowers, alleging that banks and financial institutions continue to attempt loan recoveries, resulting in bounce charges and penalty notices.

In a social media post, Saikia claimed that despite the government’s announcement to suspend equated monthly instalments (EMIs) as a relief measure for flood-affected families, borrowers are still receiving debit requests from lenders.

According to Saikia, many people who suffered heavy losses in the recent floods have exhausted their savings after losing homes, livelihoods, agricultural land and other assets. He alleged that insufficient balances in their bank accounts have led to failed EMI transactions, triggering bounce charges and penalty messages from banks and financial institutions.

Questioning the effectiveness of the government’s relief announcement, Saikia asked Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma why borrowers continue to receive recovery-related notifications if the EMI moratorium has been implemented.

“If the government has genuinely suspended EMIs, then why are people receiving such harassment messages?” Saikia said, urging the government to clarify how the moratorium is being enforced.

He further appealed to the state government to ensure that flood-affected borrowers are not subjected to additional financial stress during the relief period.

“People who have lost everything in the floods should not be burdened with confusion, penalty notices and financial harassment when they are struggling to rebuild their lives,” Saikia said.

The Congress leader’s remarks come as thousands of flood-affected families across Assam continue to recover from widespread damage caused by this year’s floods.

The Assam government has not yet issued a response to Saikia’s allegations regarding continued EMI deduction attempts or the imposition of bounce charges on flood-hit borrowers.