An umbrella body of Gurudwaras in the city has asked members of the Sikh community and account holders of the scam-hit Punjab and Maharashtra Co-operative Bank to show patience. Functionaries of the Sri Guru Singh Sabha interacted with over 100 people at the Gurudwara in Dadar on Tuesday and told them that the Sabha stands with them in their quest for justice. "Let us be patient and know what is the extent of the scam. The FIR says it is Rs 2,100 crores, while the media has been giving figures of Rs 4,500 and Rs 6,500 crore. We should first understand how big is the scam. We will intervene in the application that is filed in court," said Raghbir Singh Gill, president of the Sabha, which is looking to approach the state and Centre on the issue. Gill said he confronted the bank's directors and the chairman about the scam but they pleaded ignorance. The gathering felt that such irregularities could not have gone unnoticed by the directors. "We will first look to revive the bank," said Manmohan Singh, general secretary of the Sabha. Speakers also suggested PMCB's merger with a nationalised bank and taking stock of the assets of HDIL, the bank's biggest defaulter, to sell them to get the money back. (Rs1 crore of Gautam Julka’s family has been blocked; Pulvinder Dhaliwal had saved Rs 30 lakh in PMCB for a flat) Details of the money lost by people and their names were collected for follow-up. The gathering had people from other communities as well. "If the scam is not big, we can look to save it. But if it is shut for six months, it will collapse," said a member of the Maharashtrian community. There were also voices that people, who are from the Sikh community, should be boycotted if they are convicted. "No matter who is guilty, the person should be punished because hard-earned money of poor people has been taken away," said Gill. Favours Revival Functionaries of the Sikh body said they favour revival of the PMC Bank instead of merger with another bank. They also plan to approach the state and central governments to seek help Some of those who attended the meeting on Tuesday suggested taking stock of HDIL’s assets to liquidate them to get the depositors’ money back One of those attended the meeting was Pulvinder Dhaliwal, whose family's Rs 30 lakh has been blocked. They had deposited the money in the bank to buy a flat. "They have given a broader perspective today. Our money must come to us no matter what," said Dhaliwal. Another person, Gautam Julka, who came for the meeting hoped for relief. "A total of Rs 1 crore of ours is with the bank. All our family earnings are there." On Wednesday, a number of customers will sit on a hunger strike opposite a bank branch in Mulund.

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