New Delhi: The opposition parties in India demanded for a white paper on the Indian economy post-demonetisation after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced the withdrawal of its highest value currency note Rs 2,000 from circulation. The opposition parties castigated the Narendra Modi government saying Tuglakhs control the financial sector of the country.
“They have withdrawn the Rs 2000 notes. They may argue that this shows the strength of the economy under Modi. Are they daring enough to bring out a white paper on the Indian economy after the demonetisation?” asked Communist Party of India (CPI) MP in the Rajya Sabha Binoy Vswam on Saturday.
The RBI also advised the public to deposit Rs 2,000 notes introduced during demonetisation in November 2016, when Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes were withdrawn, into their bank accounts and or exchange them into notes of other denominations at any bank branch. It also advised banks to stop issuing Rs 2,000 notes with immediate effect.
“RBI withdraws Rs 2000 note from circulation! Virtually, reverses 2016 demonetisation, grandly announced by Modi as the answer to India’s problems of black money, corruption, terrorist funding and promoting digital economy. A dismal failure on all counts,” said senior leader of the Communist Party of India (CPI-Marxist) and former MP Sitaram Yechury.
He charged that Modi's demonetisation disaster criminally crippled crores of livelihoods, claimed hundreds of lives, destroying the informal economy and MSMEs that contribute most to employment generation and the GDP growth.
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“Cash in circulation is up 83 percent since Modi made the demonetisation disaster. Corruption is legalised and grown manifold. Karnataka massively rejected ’40 percent commission Sarkara’ in the recent elections. Condemnable terrorist attacks continue to claim innocent lives. Modi's destruction of our economy and loot of our national assets must be resisted and defeated. Crony corporate Communal nexus must be rejected. Unite in struggles to safeguard our secular democratic Republic,” Yechury said.
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Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera said that the ghost of November 8, 2016 has come back to haunt the nation once again. “The greatly propagated move of demonetisation continues to be a monumental disaster for this nation. The PM sermoned the nation on the benefits of the new 2000 notes, today when the printing is stopped what happened to all those promises?” he quipped.
The government must explain its motive for such a step. The government continues its anti-people and anti-poor agenda. Hope the media questions the government on such a drastic measure and not attribute it to ‘chip shortage’ in the world, said Khera.
