Kejriwal says demonetisation a scam worth Rs.8 lakh crore

Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday alleged that the Narendra Modi-led government's demonetisation move was a scam worth Rs 8 lakh crore.

New Delhi, Dec 7: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday alleged that the Narendra Modi-led government's demonetisation move was a scam worth Rs 8 lakh crore, done to write off bad loans.

"What was the real reason behind demonetisation. According to the data available, the banks had stressed assets of Rs 8 lakh crore. The big companies, industrialists, and the rich had taken loans from banks," said Kejriwal at the Aaj Tak conclave.

"Out of these loans, at least Rs 8 lakh crore has been misappropriated. CAG report had said that 50 per cent of it had gone abroad and the rest was taken by fraud and is not going to come back," he added.

He further said: "So they (the government) are getting it back by making people stand in queues. First, they informed the BJP people about the demonetisation move. They deposited all their money, purchased lands."

"The government has claimed that already Rs. 12 crore lakh has come back after the demonetisation move. This was done so that the money which comes back through the demonetisation move could be used to write off bad loans and Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) worth Rs. 8 lakh crore," added Kejriwal.

On November 8, the government demonetised currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000, replacing them with new Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 bills in an effort to root out black money and terror funding.

The decision has had a severe impact on the lives of the people as massive cash crunch hit the entire nation.

IANS