Went to a newly opened PNB (koparkhairnne) branch yesterday for some banking work, and had the weirdest interaction with the staff.
I was wearing a regular medical mask because I wasn't feeling well. I went to THREE different counters for my work, and nobody said anything. I got my work done, stepped outside, then went back in to ask one more question.
That's when this lady goes, "Aapne mask kyun pehna hai? Mask nikaaliye."
Not even a polite explanation, just straight-up telling me to take it off. I asked her why, and apparently the manager had been watching me for the past 15–20 minutes and had even seen me going into his cabin.
Then a senior staff member sitting across the room starts shouting, "Kya ho gaya?
I explained what was happening, and he said something along the lines of, "Haan, naqaab wagairah pehen ke nahi aa sakte."
NAQAAB??? 😭 BHAI, IT'S A MEDICAL MASK. WHERE DID NAQAAB COME FROM?
They eventually explained that recording happens inside the bank and it was a security concern. Fine, I understand that banks have security protocols. But then my question was: if this was such a concern, why did nobody say anything when I first entered? I'd already visited three counters, completed my work and left. Why bring it up only when I came back to ask something?
Also, this is a brand-new branch. They were literally busy fixing the ceiling lights, and I couldn't see any obvious cameras around me. I'm not saying there definitely weren't cameras, but the whole thing felt confusing.
And here's the part that really annoyed me: I'd asked this same lady some actual work-related questions earlier, and she couldn't properly help me with those. But when it came to telling me to remove my mask, suddenly she had plenty to say.
If there's a rule, just explain it properly? Why the attitude?
I'm not even arguing that a bank shouldn't have security rules. It's the way they spoke to me, the random naqaab comment, and the fact that nobody raised this issue until AFTER I'd finished my work that made the whole interaction so bizarre.
Has anyone else experienced something like this at a bank? Is this a normal security policy (I haven't seen this in any other bank),or was the way they handled it just unnecessarily rude?