PM's demonetisation drive aimed at fulfilling BJP's 'political interest': Mayawati

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati on Monday alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led NDA government announced the demonetisation drive to fulfil their political interest in the wake of upcoming Uttar Pradesh assembly polls.

Mayawati while addressing a press conference here dared Prime Minister Modi to come to the Parliament and face the opposition parties if he has guts.

"If anybody is suffering due to demonetisation then it is the poor, the honest and middle class. This step has been taken by the BJP to fulfil their political interest. The manner in which they announced the banning of high denomination notes without being fully prepared shows that this step has been taken in the wake of upcoming elections," said Mayawati.

"We are not defending black money. Our party wants that the menace of black money should be curbed, corruption should be ended but then there is a way of doing things," said Mayawati.

The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister alleged that the NDA regime has taken a wrong decision as a result of which the Prime Minister does not have the guts to come to the Parliament and debate the issue.

"I will ask the Prime Minister to come and listen to the opposition and if he is not wrong then he should clarify his stand," he added.

Angry disruptions were witnessed in the Parliament today with the opposition insisting that the Prime Minister must speak in the Rajya Sabha on the ban on Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 notes.

The ruling dispensation has said that Prime Minister Modi will not contribute in the Rajya Sabha, where the government is in a minority.

Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today said that he is ready to explain the government's stand, but the opposition is preventing that because it wants to stall Parliament rather than engage in discussion.

"The opposition is running away from a debate," he said.

In the Lok Sabha, the Congress and some other opposition parties insisted on a discussion on demonetisation under Rule 56, which entails voting and through an adjournment motion that implies suspension of all other business.

Prime Minister Modi has said that the ban on high value currency notes is not to agonise anyone but to clean the economy.

Speaking on demonetisation after launching the Pradhanmantri Grameen Awas Yojna, an ambitious housing scheme meant for the rural poor, in Agra yesterday, the Prime Minister said more than five lakh crore cash has been deposited in banks since last ten days.

He thanked the people for bearing the pain of high value note ban.

Prime Minister Modi said his decision to demonetise high value currency notes is punishment for those who has accumulated huge black money.