According to a Reserve Bank of India (RBI) report, more than 99% of the currency that India declared void in a surprise announcement in 2016 was returned to the country’s banks in subsequent weeks. The move failed to wipe significant hordes of unaccounted wealth from the Indian economy. Now the country will surely ask BJP, what benefit did we get from demonetisation? How many people died standing in queues? How many became unemployed? How many became bankrupt? The drive that cost India 1.5m jobs failed to uncover ‘black money’.
Suddenly the activists supporting Dalits came at the radar of the government. Every news channel is busy telecasting the news regarding their arrests. The government, in order to distract public attention from demonetisation failure, arrested social workers. These people will soon be acquitted but at present, no one will raise voice against the wrong decision of demonetisation.
But will this tactic of government succeed? As of now the issue of demonization will be overshadowed by the spate of arrests. But it remains to be seen whether the government will succeed to bury the issue in cold storage till 2019.