Demonetisation wasn't a jhatka, had warned people a year earlier: PM Modi

New Delhi, Jan 1: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said that the decision to ban old Rs 1000 and Rs 500 notes was not a 'Jhatka' (shock or sudden blow), adding that he had warned people a year earlier.

"This wasn't a jhatka. We had warned people a year before, that if you have such wealth (black money), you can deposit it, pay penalties and you will be helped out. However, they thought Modi too would behave like others so very few came forward voluntarily," he said.

"We had warned people a year before, that if you have such wealth (black money), you can deposit it, pay penalties and you will be helped out. However, they thought Modi too would behave like others so very few came forward voluntarily," PM Modi said.

Launching a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the second anniversary of demonetisation, Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday alleged that it was a "carefully planned criminal, financial scam" and described it as a "self-inflicted tragedy and a suicide attack that destroyed millions of lives"

"India will discover, no matter how the government tries to hide it, that demonetisation wasn't just an ill-conceived and poorly executed economic policy with 'innocent intent' but a carefully planned, criminal financial scam," he said in a statement. The people would not rest until they found the "full truth."

In a surprise announcement on November 8, 2016, the Prime Minister banned Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 notes overnight, leaving 80 per cent of the cash in circulation worthless. The move was aimed at curbing black money and bringing back money into the banking system.