Demonetisation has hurt prestige of Indian currency: Cong

The demonetisation move of the Narendra Modi government has dented the Indian currency's "prestige" and has subjected the Indian people to "ridicule from the international community", senior Congress leader Mohan Prakash claimed here today.
"The decision of the Modi government to ban the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes has lowered the prestige earned by the Indian currency in the last 50-60 years. People in foreign countries are mocking us by stating that the people in India are standing in long queues for hours for a few dollars," the Congress general secretary told reporters at the airport here.
Prakash said scrapping of the high-value currency notes had led to a "chaos" across the country.

"This has created an unusual situation in the country. Business activities are stopped and the poor, housewives and farmers are facing trouble...The government is feeling very happy about it," the Congress leader said.
Prakash said his party would "aggressively" raise the demonetisation issue in the forthcoming Winter Session of Parliament.
Last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi took the nation by surprise when he announced the withdrawal of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes from circulation as a measure aimed at curbing black money and counterfeiting.
However, the sudden move triggered panic among the people who are queueing up outside banks and ATMs across the country to either deposit or withdraw money or to exchange the scrapped currency notes for lower-value tender.