Claim and rebuttal

All Union ministers were asked to hold press conferences in Delhi and other cities across the country on the first anniversary of demonetisation. This led to piquant situations for several ministers whose departments have had little to do with note ban.

Some like Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi were unfazed and briefed the media about initiatives taken by her ministry to promote transparency. Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad was pilloried for his comments at a press conference in Bhopal on Tuesday to showcase the successes of note ban.

Prasad said that among other benefits of demonetisation, prostitution had “nosedived”. His political rivals had a field day over his remarks on prostitution. “If this is indeed true and @rsprasad actually said it, could the Hon’ble Law Minister please enlighten us which government department tracks prostitutes and keeps a tab on their earnings? The nation wants to know,” tweeted Congress leader Manish Tewari.