JAMMU: Expressing concern over the multifarious problems faced by the common man in the wake of demonetization, Harsh Dev Singh, JKNPP Chairman and former Minister, has called the union government to appropriately address the crisis like situation by ensuring adequate flow of new currency notes.
He said that the scrapping of prevalent currency had a devastating effect upon the common man, farmers, labourers, small traders, truckers and those working in rural areas adding that currency squeeze was taking a heavy toll on sowing, people dying while standing in queues and feeling harassed in paying for weddings, medical emergency and even for groceries.
Harsh said that while fight against corruption was welcome but the govt. could have explored other available options as well. He said that even the Former RBI Governor Raghu Ram Rajan had dis-approved of demonetization on the grounds that it was “old fashioned tool” and that big black money hoarders would always find escape routes. He regretted that the better options of stronger tax administration and realigning taxes proposed by several economists had been down played and discarded by the govt.
Describing the demonetization exercise as a cover up operation to hide the failure of the BJP led govt. to fulfill its promise of bringing back the black money stashed abroad, Singh said that people were gradually realizing the truth behind its deceptive facades. He reminded the union govt. of the Bill passed by it in the parliament last year to unearth the black money held by Indians abroad with a 12% interest penalty and ten year jail term and questioned whether any one was punished under the said law.
Pointing towards the political overtones of the demonetization move, Singh said that currency scrapping was largely aimed at countering the public taunting for Modi’s claims of Rs. 15 lacs for every citizens account after bringing back the black money stashed abroad. He said that the only noticeable fall out of the demonetization exercise was the large scale conversion of currency notes into gold, dollars, real estate besides other forms of money laundering. He said that demonetization had further been followed by opening large number of bank accounts with black money being deposited into them as well as in Jan Dhan Yojana accounts which were literally bought by the big hoarders from poor people.
Describing the demonetization exercise as grossly inadequate to unearth black money, Singh sought the fulfillment of Modi’s promise to bring back Rs 500 lakh crores black money held in Swiss and other Banks abroad by Indians rather than demonstrating his power and authority over poor labourers lined up in queues for exchanging their hard earned currency notes valuing Rs. 4000.