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Four years after the decision to scrap ₹500 and ₹1,000 notes, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday, November 8, defended the move saying that it reduced corruption and increased transparency.
On the fourth anniversary of the decision on Sunday, PM Modi tweeted, "Demonetisation has helped reduce black money, increase tax compliance and formalization and given a boost to transparency. These outcomes have been greatly beneficial towards national progress. #DeMolishingCorruption."
PM Modi had announced the decision on November 8, 2016, with four hours' notice, after which people thronged ATM centres and banks to withdraw new notes.
Although the Prime Minister had asked the citizens to bear the pain only for 50 days promising that the situation would improve later, it took months for people to get the cash they needed with many businesses dragged to chaos.
Meanwhile, Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said demonetisation led to better tax compliance and a major push towards a digital economy. In one of her tweet, she said, "To fulfill its promise of freeing India from corruption, the Modi government implemented Demonetisation 4 years ago on this day, today. The move that was an unprecedented attack on Black Money also led to better tax compliance and a major push to digital economy. #DemolishingCorruption."
"Demonetisation not only brought transparency and widened the tax base, it also curbed counterfeit currency and increased circulation. #DemolishingCorruption," she said in another tweet.
