Mamata Banerjee visits banks, ATMs, demands rollback of ‘black policy’

Kolkata: Dubbing the Centre’s demonetisation move as the “black policy of the black government”, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today visited banks and ATMs in the city to witness the “hardship” faced by the common people and demanded withdrawal of the decision.

She visited three banks and several ATMs at Sarat Bose Road, Bhawanipore and Chowringhee and spoke to the people there.

“These are all common people. Let the government nab the real culprits,” Banerjee said.

“I visited several bank branches and ATMs since the morning. I spoke to the people…How they were facing this inconvenience due to an ill-planned and anti-people policy.

Those who have black money are not standing in long queues,” she said.

“It (the Modi government) should immediately withdraw the decision. It is causing an immense harassment to the masses.

Most of the ATMs are still closed. From where will the common man get the money to run the family,” Banerjee asked.

Pointing out that after standing for hours in a queue, people received only one Rs 2,000 note each, she said, “How will they use this one Rs 2,000 note for all of their daily needs? They are not getting currency notes of lower denominations. There is total chaos and anger.”

Earlier in the day, renewing her attack on the Modi government for the move to demonetise the Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 currency notes, Banerjee had demanded withdrawal of this “black” political decision, saying it was against the common people.

“Withdraw this ‘black’ political decision which is anti-commoner. Markets across India ruined, purchasing power crashing, people pained,” she had tweeted.

Claiming that she had said this before, Banerjee said, “But, given the way the young, old and everyone is suffering, let me again appeal to the Central government (to withdraw the decision)”.

“This has turned out to be a big black scandal. Hardship for the common citizens and full advantage to the money-launderers,” she added.

The Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief, on Thursday, had called upon all the opposition parties to work together against the “anti-poor government at the Centre”.

Mocking the prime minister, she had said that Narendra Modi had gone to Japan after making the people “poor” in India.

Banerjee had also penned a poem on the demonetisation issue.

Money changers, entry operators active in converting black

Kolkata:The demonetisation of high value currency notes by the Modi government has suddenly made ‘money-changers’ and ‘entry-operators’ active in managing black money.

Money changers are reported to be using zero balance ‘Jan Dhan’ accounts, mostly held by BPL families, as a vehicle to convert old currency by depositing Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes up to Rs 2.5 lakhs in these accounts.

“I am getting handsomely paid for depositing up to Rs 2.5 lakhs in my ‘Jan Dhan’ account and withdraw money when the restrictions end,” a tea stall employee standing in a queue outside a bank here said.

Reportedly, money changers are taking 20-30 per cent cut for the entire transaction of changing old banned currency with new notes.

There are more than 25 crore Jan Dhan accounts and the money changers and entry operators are tapping this segment to convert black money to legal currency.

However, All India Federation of Tax Practitioner Vice-president Narayan Jain said such a tactic was not practical on a mass scale, although some of these accounts might be misused.

A building material supply syndicate member in the satellite township of Rajarhat told a news channel here that they were facing huge problem following the government decision.

“Most of our trade is transacted through hard cash. Now, we found out a way (through entry-operators). We manage to get Rs 70 lakhs for Rs one crore,” he said.

Income Tax department sources said they were keeping an eye on such entry-operators and had tracked one in the city recently.

Jain cautioned that the people using entry operators to convert their black money might get double-trapped.

“I-T will enquire once high value transactions take place, so it is advisable to disclose the source of the money officially,” he added.

PTI