New Delhi: Hitting out at the Opposition parties for opposing the Narendra Modi-led central government's demonetisation policy, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Amit Shah on Saturday said that the decision wasn't taken in a hurry but in consulatation with Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
Shah said that the 50-day deadline, ending December 30, was fixed after much 'careful planning', and most of the cash crunch woes at ATMs and banks would be over by this deadline.
"Neither was anything kept secret from RBI, nor was it not consulted, the decision (to demonetise Rs 500 and 1000) was taken after adequate consultations by Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) at the small forum, and all administrative nitty-gritty was gone through. The decision was not taken in a hurry, nor was there any reason to be in a hurry," Shah said.
However, he reasoned the delay in printing new notes behind the ongoing cash crunch the country is facing.
"The cash crunch is because of delay in printing currency notes, and its taking time to distribute, that`s why the 50-day deadline was set. I am not saying that after 50-day deadline the queues at banks will be fully over, but most of the woes would be over," he said.
The BJP chief also expressed hope that business at factories would be back to normal in two months.
"The factories are closed, not because of (lack of) cash but nearly 30 to 40 per cent of transactions that were not taking place earlier in cheques, will now change, and the traders will show these transactions in books," he said.
While stating that he emphathises with people standing in queues outside ATMs, the BJP president said people were also losing patience due to lack of infrastructure, indicating that the increased government revenue will solve these issues.
Shah added further and said that government understand people's difficulty due to demonetisation of higher currency notes, but these 50 days will provide relief from black money for the coming 50 years.
"We know line is there people are facing difficulty. But Modi has sought 50 days. The inconvenience of these 50 days will provide relief from black money for the coming 50 years," Shah said while addressing a rally at Shahjahanpur in Uttar Pradesh.
Shah also said that the opposition does not want the nation should get rid of black money and wasted complete winter session by shouting.
He also said that if Uttar Pradesh needs to be pushed towards progress, the people have to elect BJP to power with 2/3rd majority.
"Modi has sanctioned Rs one lakh crore per year to Uttar Pradesh but still there is no progress in the state," he said.
