The Reserve Bank of India on Friday announced to withdraw the Rs 2,000 currency notes from circulation which led to sharp criticism from the opposition leaders. Senior Congress leader O Chidambaram termed the decision as expected saying that the 2016 demonetisation move has come a full circle with the withdrawal of Rs 2,000 notes. Taking to Twitter, Chidambaram said that the Rs 2,000 note was hardly a popular medium of exchange.


'Rs 2,000 Note Was A Band-Aid'


COMMERCIAL BREAK
SCROLL TO CONTINUE READING

The Congress leader said that the Rs 2,000 notes were used to cover up the foolish decision of demonetisation. "As expected, the government/RBI have withdrawn the Rs 2,000 note and given time until September 30 to exchange the notes. The Rs 2,000 note is hardly a popular medium of exchange. We said this in November 2016 and we have been proved correct. The Rs 2,000 note was a band-aid to cover up the foolish decision of demonetising Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes which were popular and widely exchanged currencies," he said.



'Rs 1,000 Note To Come Back?'


Chidambaram said that he won't be surprised if just like the Rs 500 note, the government re-introduces a new Rs 1,000 note. "A few weeks after Demonetisation, the government/RBI were forced to re-introduce the Rs 500 note. I shall not be surprised if the government/RBI re-introduced the Rs 1000 note as well. Demonetisation has come full circle!" he said.


'Rs 2,000 Notes Used To Keep Black Money'


Opining that the Rs 2,000 notes were not clean and popular, Chidambaram said, "Rs 2,000 note was never a 'clean' note. It was not used by the vast majority of the people. It was used only by people to keep their black money, temporarily!"


What Is The Matter?


The Reserve Bank of India on Friday said it has asked banks to stop issuing Rs 2,000 notes with immediate effect. The bank asked people holding Rs 2,000 notes to get them exchanged from banks before September 30. While the RBI did not specify a limit for depositing the Rs 2,000 currency notes in bank accounts, the exchange of a maximum of Rs 20,000 (10 notes of Rs 2,000) for other currency notes will be allowed at a time.


What's Next After September 30?


After September 30, all Rs 2,000 notes will become illegal tender and thus cannot be used for any commercial purpose. This means, neither you will be able to buy things using the Rs 2,000 currency notes nor you can deposit them with banks after September 30 this year. However, you can use Rs 2,000 notes to buy things or can deposit them with banks before September 30, 2023.