Economic anarchy: Opposition trains guns at Modi over currency spike

Speaking during a debate on the currency ban in Parliament on the first day of the winter session, Congress leader Anand Sharma urged the government not to tarnish the nation’s image by banning currency notes of higher denominations under the guise of curbing black money.

For The New York Times Ellen Barry and Suhasini Raj wrote “The plan, top secret until Mr. Modi’s announcement, was hailed by financial analysts as bold and potentially transformational for India”.

Prime Minister Modi’s mother, Heeraben Modi, visited a bank in Gandhinagar on Tuesday to exchange currency.

“In order to divert people’s attention from his failures, Modi levels baseless allegations against his political opponents which is condemnable.Allegations on policy matters are different but personal ones should not be made.He can not tolerate that a Dalit ki beti is presented garland of notes”, she said, adding one can not digest what Mayawati wears. The statement says, “IT raids have found that only 5-6% of black money is kept in hard cash”, while the rest is converted into “bullion, gold jewellery, real estate and foreign currencies through brokers and middle-men”, adding, “In fact, organized middle-men and touts have already emerged to convert black money into white for a commission”. “As far as the traders are concerned they would rather be happy that the people who used to take bribes from them will not be able to do so in future because of the crackdown on black money and, thus, they will be left with more profit”, he reasoned. When the crowd did so, he said his mandate was to clear the country of graft and weed out the corrupt and he was merely doing so.

Despite being a partner of the BJP-led governments in Maharashtra as well as at the Centre, unlike other NDA components the Sena has taken a strident stance against the demonetisation, holding the hardship it causes to the people is greater than its positive yield.

“The claim that this is a step to fight corruption is a hollow one”.

Due to the hasty and ill-planned decision of the Prime Minister, people in the entire country were on the roads, she said in Lucknow.

“They also, in one voice, requested the Prime Minister to take the crusade against black money to its logical end”, he said.

State Samajwadi Party chief Shivpal Singh Yadav and Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav have slammed the Prime Minister for bringing the situation to a point of no return for the farmers. “The mood of the nation is in favour of Modi Govt and everyone in the meeting agreed that it is a historic decision”. He said while the total salt production was 220 lakh tonnes, the domestic consumption was only 60,000 tonnes and thus there was no shortage.

“New Delhi might need to look for ideas from Beijing”, according to the article titled “Beijing offers clues for Modi’s new anti-corruption moves” in state-run The Global Times.

Even as most BJP leaders here spare no opportunity to hail the “surgical strike on black money”, in private, the very same leaders are jittery of its consequences on the upcoming assembly polls.

“Everybody supported the decision and said the government should move forward”.