Express News Service
NEW DELHI: The Rajya Sabha witnessed an unusual demand on Monday from BJP MP and former Bihar finance minister Sushil Kumar Modi, who urged the Centre to phase out the Rs 2,000 currency denomination and said that netizens holding such banknotes should be given two years to deposit it.
Raising the issue during the Zero-Hour, Modi said that the Rs 2,000 currency denomination has almost become invisible and vanished from markets and most of the ATMs in the country.
He suspected that it might be illegally hoarded and may be used in illegal trades such as drugs, money laundering and others. He also expressed dismay over the Rs 2000 currency not being used for normal transactions.
“There is a need for phasing out the Rs 2000 currency notes in a gradual manner giving adequate time for people to deposit their legitimate holdings into smaller denomination currency notes,” Modi said, adding that there was no logic in bringing a Rs 2000 currency note when Rs 1,000 denomination was out of circulation.
He said that while the Rs 2000 note was introduced by RBI to replace the demonetised Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes in 2016, their printing has stopped in the last three years owing to several challenges associated with the circulation.
Citing examples of some developed countries which don’t have currencies of higher denomination, Modi said that the USD 100 is the highest denomination in the USA while 100 Yuan in China, 100 CAD in Canada and 200 Euros in European Union are of the higher denomination.
Citing as an example in support of his demand, he said that the EU discontinued 5000 Eros notes in 2018 and Singapore stopped issuing USD 10,000 notes in 2010 to curb illegal activities of drug trafficking, money laundering, terror funding and tax evasion.
“Since India is also becoming a hub for digital transactions which also entail settlements of larger amounts, there is limited need for having a high-denomination currency of Rs 2000,” he categorically stated while urging to phase it out.
NEW DELHI: The Rajya Sabha witnessed an unusual demand on Monday from BJP MP and former Bihar finance minister Sushil Kumar Modi, who urged the Centre to phase out the Rs 2,000 currency denomination and said that netizens holding such banknotes should be given two years to deposit it.
Raising the issue during the Zero-Hour, Modi said that the Rs 2,000 currency denomination has almost become invisible and vanished from markets and most of the ATMs in the country.
He suspected that it might be illegally hoarded and may be used in illegal trades such as drugs, money laundering and others. He also expressed dismay over the Rs 2000 currency not being used for normal transactions.
“There is a need for phasing out the Rs 2000 currency notes in a gradual manner giving adequate time for people to deposit their legitimate holdings into smaller denomination currency notes,” Modi said, adding that there was no logic in bringing a Rs 2000 currency note when Rs 1,000 denomination was out of circulation.
He said that while the Rs 2000 note was introduced by RBI to replace the demonetised Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes in 2016, their printing has stopped in the last three years owing to several challenges associated with the circulation.
Citing examples of some developed countries which don’t have currencies of higher denomination, Modi said that the USD 100 is the highest denomination in the USA while 100 Yuan in China, 100 CAD in Canada and 200 Euros in European Union are of the higher denomination.
Citing as an example in support of his demand, he said that the EU discontinued 5000 Eros notes in 2018 and Singapore stopped issuing USD 10,000 notes in 2010 to curb illegal activities of drug trafficking, money laundering, terror funding and tax evasion.
“Since India is also becoming a hub for digital transactions which also entail settlements of larger amounts, there is limited need for having a high-denomination currency of Rs 2000,” he categorically stated while urging to phase it out.
