10th Anniv Of DeMo: Shabbir Ali Seeks Detailed Report From Centre
According to RBI figures, approximately 99.3 per cent of the invalidated currency, amounting to around `15.31 lakh crore, returned to the banking system.
Hyderabad: In view of the 10th anniversary of demonetisation, Government Adviser Mohammed Ali Shabbir on Saturday strongly condemned the Modi-government’s unilateral decision and demanded the Union government should release a comprehensive assessment of demonetisation, detailing its impact on employment, GDP, agriculture, small businesses, counterfeit currency, tax compliance and recovery of unaccounted income.
In a statement to media, he described it a “disastrous economic experiment” that inflicted “enormous hardship on ordinary citizens, destroyed livelihoods and disrupted India's cash-dependent informal economy without delivering adequately on its stated objectives.:”
“November 8 should serve as a reminder that governments must be accountable to decisions affecting millions of livelihoods.
People of India deserve transparent answer about the economic cost and measurable benefits of demonetisation.
An economic decision must be judged by its actual results, not by political publicity.
The hardships experienced by ordinary Indians could not be dismissed merely because ten years have passed,” he said.
Shabbir Ali said the sudden withdrawal of 500 and 1,000 currency notes on November 8, 2016, invalidated nearly 87 per cent of the country’s currency in circulation by value, triggering a severe cash shortage that affected millions of households, farmers, workers and small businesses.
“Ten years ago, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised to eliminate black money, corruption, counterfeit currency and terror financing through demonetisation.
People were asked to endure extraordinary hardships in the national interest.
A decade later, the government was not able to provide a comprehensive account of what the country actually gained from those sacrifices,” he said.
Shabbir Ali said the RBI's final accounting had exposed serious questions about the effectiveness of demonetisation.
According to RBI figures, approximately 99.3 per cent of the invalidated currency, amounting to around `15.31 lakh crore, returned to the banking system.