DeMo paved way for monopolies by devastating MSMEs: Rahul on note ban anniversary

Lok Sabha leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Friday alleged that demonetisation has led to monopolies by devastating the MSMEs (medium, small and micro enterprises) and informal sector, and India continues to use more cash today than eight years ago. His attack came on the eighth anniversary of demonetisation.

On 8 November 2016, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced demonetisation in an address to the nation, declaring that Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes would cease to be legal tender.

One of the reasons cited by the government at that time was to promote the digital economy and reduce cash transactions to check corruption and black money.

"India continues to use more cash today than 8 years ago when demonetisation was implemented. DeMo paved the way for monopolies by devastating MSMEs and the informal sector," Gandhi said in a post on X.

Incompetent and ill-intended policies that create an environment of fear for businesses will stifle India's economic potential, the former Congress chief said. "What is needed is a new deal that fosters fairness and freedom to unlock the energy of play-fair businesses across the country," he asserted.

Gandhi also shared a chart that shows how cash with the public fell from 11 per cent of GDP in 2013-14 to 8 per cent in 2016-17 and has now risen to 14 per cent of GDP in 2020-21. The cash with the public is now 12 per cent of GDP in 2022-23, the chart showed.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav also attacked the BJP on the eighth anniversary of demonetisation, alleging that the party has destroyed the country's economy through its policies and programmes.

Yadav said an entire chapter will be written on demonetisation in black letters in the history of the Indian economy. "The rupee hit a new all-time low against the dollar yesterday, a day before the eighth anniversary of demonetisation. People are asking whether this happened owing to the failure of demonetisation or the negative policies of the BJP," he said in a post on X in Hindi.

He wondered if the BJP would give it a spin and say it's not the rupee that has fallen but the dollar which has gained strength. "The BJP turned the arth-vyavastha (economy) into anarth-vyavastha (turmoil)," he said, accusing the ruling party of mismanaging and ruining the country's economy.

He said the falling rupee has caused resentment among people against the BJP. The rupee dropped 5 paise to hit a new all-time low of 84.37 (provisional) against the US dollar on Friday, weighed down by persistent foreign fund outflows and a muted trend in domestic equities.