india

Updated: Nov 08, 2019 12:01 IST

Likening the 2016 demonetisation of notes by the NDA government to a ‘terror attack’, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on the third anniversary of the announcement said that those behind the ‘attack’ were yet to be ‘brought to justice’.

The Narendra-Modi-led government on November 8, 2016 invalidated Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, taking off circulation 86% of all cash at the time.

“It’s 3 yrs since the Demonetisation terror attack that devastated the Indian economy, taking many lives, wiping out lakhs of small businesses & leaving millions of Indians unemployed,” the former Congress president tweeted. “Those behind this vicious attack have yet to be brought to justice,” he added.

The Congress has been a strong critic of the notes ban maintaining that the move was aimed at benefiting a few industrialists and resulted in massive job losses in the informal sector. The party is currently on a 10-day nationwide agitation by over economic issues including demonetization.

Another Congress leader, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, also hit out in a tweet at the Modi government for claiming that demonetisation was a “slayer of all evils”, saying it proved to be a “disaster” that has all but destroyed the economy.

“3 years since Demonetisation and every claim made by the government and those hailing it as a slayer of all evils has been turned on its head. It proved to be a disaster that has all but destroyed our economy,” Priyanka Gandhi said in a tweet.

“Anyone want to claim responsibility?” the Congress general secretary said, using the hashtag ‘DeMonetisation Disaster’.

Another Opposition leader and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee also attacked the government on the third anniversary of demonetization calling it ‘a futile exercise.’

“Today is the third anniversary of #DeMonetisationDisaster. Within minutes of announcement, I had said that it will ruin the economy and the lives of millions.

Renowned economists, common people & all experts now agree.

Figures from RBI have also shown it was a futile exercise,” the chief minister tweeted.