Demonetisation: This explanation by Yogendra Yadav for delayed cash deposit is bang on

Political activist and academic Yogendra Yadav has given an explanation to his bank that many harried customers, now hurrying to the bank, would want to give to their banks for making delayed deposits.

In the hard hitting declaration he submitted while making a “small deposit”, Yadav has said that he was waiting for the queues to end to approach the bank and that he saw no reason to offer any special explanation for his decision.

“I see no reason to offer any special explanation for the same [for making the deposit now]. I normally like and wait for the queues to end. I was assured by the Prime Minister,the Finance Minister and the RBI that there was no need to rush to the banks and that I had till 30 December for making any deposit. I believed them,” Yadav has said in his crisp letter.

Yadav’s explanation comes a day after the finance ministry and RBI brought out a notification saying that the customers can make deposits worth more than Rs 5,000 of old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes only once until 30 December now and that they will also have to explain why they did not do so before hand.

Later on Monday finance minister Arun Jaitley had clarified that the customers need not give explanations if they are making the deposits in one go. He said bank officials will question only if a customer is making deposits repeatedly.

Explaining the rationale behind the move, the finance ministry had said the decision was taken as “it is expected that, by now, most of the people would have deposited such old notes in their possession”. However, one reason, which was not mentioned in the release but is widely known, is the government’s suspicion that a few tax evaders may be laundering their ill-gotten wealth before the deadline ends by using proxies to make deposits in banks.

There is also assumption that the government may be trying to reduce deposit gathering at banks after the demonetisation, which has already surpassed all estimates. Going by the pace of deposit accrual, there are fears that the final number may prove the entire demonetisation exercise a futile one as a higher-than-expected figure would mean return of the black money into the system.

The latest directive, however, came as a shock to many as it goes against the promise that Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave while making the demonetisation announcement on 8 November. He had then said that nobody needs to panic as there is time until 30 December to make deposits of old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. This promise was repeated in many government advertisements and also by other ministers to calm down the public.

Those honest customers who waited patiently until the queue shortens at the bank branches are now at the receiving end of the new directive. Read in this context, Yadav’s explanation is bang on.

First Published On : Dec 20, 2016 17:22 IST