Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Urjit Patel should stand firm against bullying and never be provoked by the government, said Arun Shourie, former divestment minister.

"I don’t know Urjit Patel and Viral Acharya but if through you I can convey a message that just never be provoked by these characters (government), they are cowards, and bullies," Shourie said. "So, if you stand firm they will retreat but they will try to see where to get at you in other ways. So good persons should never resign, they must stand firm."

Shourie's comments come after the news that Patel is considering all options including resigning from his post following an unprecedented attack on the central bank’s functioning by finance minister Arun Jaitley.

The development comes amid a growing rift between the centre and the central bank after RBI deputy governor Viral Acharya, in a fiery speech, warned that undermining a central bank's independence could be "potentially catastrophic".

The speech by RBI deputy governor Viral Acharya is one of the most important by a senior functionary of the Central Bank and we must compliment him for speaking up, Shourie said.

Former governor Raghuram Rajan was really pushed out of his post because he was insisting on ways of proceeding and ways of assessment that the names of big defaulters were coming out, he said.

First Published:Nov 1, 2018 9:54 PM IST