[dropcap]O[/dropcap]n Wednesday, all the opposition political parties including BJP’s ally Shiv Sena will come on the street to protest against demonetisation, but surprisingly main opposition party Congress will not join a march organised by Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress to petition the President against the scrapping of notes. A day before Parliament convenes for the winter session and as battle lines were drawn, the picture of unity that both the government and opposition had flaunted seemed to fade with the time. People have to realise why these parties are teaming up against the BJP. Did they speak up or raise their voice for the inconvenience face by common man in their day-to-day lives? No. These parties are severely affected by the demonetisation move and not the people. Never believe that political parties exist for the welfare of the people. If they were then the respective states would have flourished under their rule. Believe in what economists say around the world and not these politicians.
Shiv Sena Chief Uddhav Thackeray has criticised the government for the hardships that demonetisation has caused to common people. Mamata Banerjee’s party however wants to meet the President straightaway on the notes ban, which Ms Banerjee has called a “draconian decision” that punishes common people who had to form long queues at banks to exchange old notes for money to buy essential commodities. They will put up a united face in Parliament though, with both parties and the Janata Dal United moving notices to suspend all work on the very first day to debate demonetisation and its impact on people. Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party and the National Conference leader Omar Abdullah have said they will join the march from Parliament House to Rashtrapati Bhawan, the presidential palace. Meanwhile, PM Modi has rejected all demands to withdraw the notes ban. He informed a group of his party’s top lawmakers that the “country has welcomed the move,” but the “opposition is trying to sabotage it”. He made it clear that the government will not be defensive about a decision that he said holds long-term benefits for the country, though he has repeatedly acknowledged the hardships that people are facing amid the cash crunch after the move. The government will however have to give in to the opposition’s demand for an immediate debate on the issue to ensure minimum disruption of the session and the support it needs to push two bills related to its mega reform the Goods and Services Tax, a unified tax it hopes to implement by April 01 next year.
Let’s us assume that they have all come together to fight for corruption, then why this decision took so much time to react when more than 25 people have died. The political parties’ motive is not going to help people. I don’t endorse the demonetisation decision of the ruling party but not cheap politics over this crucial issue. We, the people of India, are facing inconvenience but we are willing to do it because ultimately this is our own nation. None of these political leaders stood in queue with common man for exchanging of notes. Then why this political stunt of blocking the roads? And how these roads blocks are going to solve people’s problem?
I understand that people are facing trouble but these changes are happening for good and will be beneficial in future. I know, there will be some people that are against the decision but we as Indians need to think for our future and do not listen to these people. The decision was definitely good but the execution was wrong. Government hurried in declaring the ban, but now the time is to find solutions but not organise agitations. If the country fails to take this opportunity of cleansing herself now, the countrymen may not have an opportunity to forgive themselves forever. Thus, fully proving Winston Churchill’s observation on Indian independence right, which goes as “Power will go to the hands of rascals, rogues, freebooters; all Indian leaders will be of low caliber and men of straw. They will have sweet tongues and silly hearts. They will fight amongst themselves for power and India will be lost in political squabbles. A day would come when even air and water would be taxed in India.” God save this country at least now from these unethical rogues up in arms to derail this movement and help this PM whose intentions and actions set a sweet tone to earnestness.
Moreover, no one is showing the positive side of the story. Media is not presenting where all the things are going smoothly. It can go and ask people at-least those who are living in cities like Delhi, Mumbai (metropolitan cities) that people can use their card for daily needs and do not stand in line just for changing their money with Rs. 2000 note. I can understand that online shopping/card swap facility is not available in rural areas but it exists in urban areas. People on the streets is hailing the government’s decision despite an admitted hardship which they are willingly accepting and at the same time some political parties are complaining due to obvious reasons.
The Supreme Court also refused to stay the November 8 government notification demonetising Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 currency and asked the Centre to take immediate measures to alleviate the hardships and sufferings of the traumatised common man who is “forced” to stand in queues to withdraw a little bit of his own hard-earned money. The Bench asked the Centre to file an affidavit by November 25, 2016, detailing the various measures it can take to lessen the hardship and inconvenience caused to people without hindering the larger objective of the government notification to get rid of black money and cross-border terror financing. Let us wait for government’s reply, and hope for smoother banking operations.
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