NEW DELHI: Then Reserve Bank of India governor Raghuram Rajan “was on board” when finance ministry officials and the RBI brass “firmed up a decision in May 2016” to recall Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 currency notes, economic affairs secretary Shaktikanta Das told members of the Parliamentary Standing Committee of Finance on Thursday, according to sources.Das is also learnt to have told the committee that the post-demonetisation GDP “is growing at 7.1 per cent”.Ever since Prime Minister Modi announced demonetisation , on November 8, 2016, two months after Rajan was succeeded as RBI governor by Urjit Patel , there has been speculation on whether Rajan agreed with the currency recall idea during internal discussions.Responding to members’ questions at Thursday’s meeting, Das said the initial discussions between the finance ministry officials and RBI brass on demonetisation started in January-February 2016 and the decision was firmed in May 2016.Some members, particularly Bhartruhari Mahtab, is learnt to have asked Das at this stage whether Rajan agreed with the noterecall decision. “He was on board,” Das said.However, when Congress members Digvijaya Singh and Jyotiradiya Scindia asked about the quantum of old notes that have returned to RBI after demonetisation and exact logistical cost of demonetisation and remonetisation, Das and colleagues did not give specific answers but said it was for the RBI to provide the details.When BJP member Nishikant Dubey specifically asked for reasons why previous governments had avoided demonetisation despite three expert committees recommending it, finance ministry officials said that they will provide Dubey the reasons later. When Dubey asked for exact reasons why the GDP-cash ratio shot up from 8.96 per cent in 2007-8 to 12 per cent in 2012, the officials again promised to provide the reasons later, in writing.Incidentally, RBI governor Urjit Patel, originally scheduled to appear before the House panel on Thursday, did not turn up.He took prior permission of the panel chairman to postpone his appearance to June 8, citing his preoccupation with monetary policy discussions.