Rahul Gandhi says demonetisation a ‘Modi-made’ disaster
Rahul Gandhi said Narendra Modi's demonetisation move was to help the rich who have allegedly borrowed over Rs8 trillion from Indian banks
Bengaluru: Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on Saturday continued his attacks on the central government’s demonetisation move while addressing a rally in Karnataka’ Belagavi, calling it a ‘Modi-made disaster.
“All black money is not cash; all cash is not black money," Gandhi said and added that instead of targeting the 1% of the people who owned 85% of the wealth, the government went after 99% of the population. He alleged that money has been snatched from the pockets of the poor to help the wealthiest 50 families in the country.
Calling the demonetisation of Rs500 and Rs1000 currency notes as “firebombing" the farmer, poor and small traders of the country, Gandhi said that the move was to help the rich who have allegedly borrowed over Rs8 trillion from Indian banks. Gandhi said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power with the help of the 1% rich of the country, of which the 50 super rich families had funded his election and marketing in 2014.
Gandhi said, “Modi knows he cannot recover this money from the super rich. He thought of a new plan. He thought if he cannot take out money from the rich, he will take it out of the poor’s pockets and get them to put it in banks." He added that in September, nearly Rs6 trillion was deposited into banks which was unprecedented.
He alleged that the Prime Minister’s aim was to get all the poor farmers, labourers and others money “trapped" in banks and keep it there for as long as possible. He said that this was the main reason why adequate amounts of new currency was not printed in time and citizens could not withdraw their entire cash holding by placing restrictions. “If you removed all your money, his plan would have failed," he said while adding that it would take at least 4-6 months for the situation to normalize.
Gandhi also sought to know why Lalit Modi and Vijay Mallya were not brought to the country and made accountable. The central government had given a Rs1,200 crore “toffee" to Vijay Mallya as his entire dues were waived off, he said.
Taking a dig at the government’s “cashless economy" push, Gandhi said that this was part of a larger ploy to make commissions on every transaction that would not have been possible with cash.
Rahul Gandhi-led Congress has held protests against demonetisation which resulted in a complete wipeout of the winter session in the Parliament that concluded on Thursday.
Gandhi said that he was sure that in the coming days, the loans of the 50 super rich families will be waived off.
He also took a dig at the prime minister for denying an appointment to Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah to discuss the second successive drought in the state. The state government has declared 139 talukas, or administrative units, as drought affected this year and sought central assistance to help with relief efforts.
Unlock a world of Benefits! From insightful newsletters to real-time stock tracking, breaking news and a personalized newsfeed – it's all here, just a click away! Login Now!