Demonetisation carried out in ‘haphazard’ manner: Former PM Deve Gowda

NEW DELHI: Former Prime Minister H D Gowda, who had implemented a Voluntary Disclosure Scheme (VDS) to unearth black money during his tenure, today said the present government had carried out demonetisation in a “haphazard” manner causing “unimaginable sufferings” to the people.

The JD(S) chief said Prime Minister Narendra Modi should have spoken on demonetisation in Parliament “so that we could reply”.

“The best thing would have been that the Prime Minister should have made a statement in the House on the very first day of the ongoing Winter session” regarding the decision which he had already announced on November 8 when Parliament was not in session, Gowda told PTI here.

“We are not against efforts to curb black money. But in my opinion, the Prime Minister announced demonetisation without any preparation. It was done in a haphazard manner,” said the Lok Sabha member who has been waiting to speak on the issue in the House but could not due to its non-functioning.

Gowda said 22 days have already passed since the announcement was made by Modi in a nationally-televised address but people, particularly the farmers and the labourers, continue to go through “unimaginable sufferings”.

Noting that the Prime Minister had asked people to “tolerate” the difficulties for 50 days, he questioned, “How long does this government want the people to suffer?”

The senior leader from Karnataka said in his state, banks do not have enough cash and they close down as early as noon, leaving people high and dry.

“It was a hasty decision by the Prime Minister without proper assessment which has put the country in an awkward situation,” he emphasised.

83-year-old Gowda, who was Prime Minister from June 1996 to April 1997, recalled the VDS implemented by him during his tenure which had unearthed Rs 10,000 crore of undisclosed money. .