RBI Governor Urjit Patel, who had a run in with the government over the autonomy of the central bank, resigned from his post on Monday.
In a brief statement, Patel cited "personal reasons" for the decision and said he has decided to step down with immediate effect.
Following the announcement, a range of reactions started trickling in.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union minister Arun Jaitley tweeted about the same. Calling Patel "a thorough professional with impeccable integrity," the prime minister said that he steered the banking system from chaos to order and ensured discipline.
Jaitley said that it was a pleasure for him to deal with Patel and benefit from his scholarship.
Reactions from RBI
Former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan told ET Now that he believes Patel's resignation is a matter of great concern. "Resignation by a government servant is a note of protest, when faced with circumstances they cannot deal with," he was further quoted as saying.
He also said that the government must take extreme care in its relationship further with the RBI.
Former RBI Governor C Rangarajan, in an interview with Bloomberg Quint, said he was surprised at the development. He further said that there can be no vacancy in the governorship of the RBI. The government will have to simultaneously announce their decision regarding the governorship.
RBI central board member S Gurumurthy was quoted as saying by ANI that he was surprised at the news of the governor's resignation.
Political reactions
Congress tweeted, "Another one bites the dust."
Congress MP Ahmed Patel tweeted that the manner in which the RBI governor has been forced to quit is a blot on India's monetary and banking system.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Subramanian Swamy was quoted as saying by ANI that Patel's resignation will be bad for the economy, government and the RBI.