The Congress on Monday asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to tell the nation the amount of black money, counterfeit currency and terror financing unearthed since November 8, when the sudden move to withdraw high-value currency was announced.
AICC spokesman Manish Tewari criticised the way Modi addressed the nation on New Year’s Eve, saying no elected leader has ever spoken in such a “threatening” manner” - like an “invader”. The party also sought to know from the Prime Minister as how much of reduction in terror financing has taken place after demonetisation.
“Whether the Government was willing to destroy the notes under the supervision of the Supreme Court or under a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), the Prime Minister in the last three days has not answered crucial questions raised by the opposition. Neither RBI nor the government has said anything on how much black money has been returned. They have not said anything on all these issues,” AICC spokesman Manish Tewari said at AICC briefing.
Accusing the prime minister of pitting the poor against the rich, Tewari said he needed to “introspect”. Asked why the Prime Minister was not answering questions raised by the Opposition, he said, “This is the way dictators function as they dub their detractors as traitors.”
Taking a dig at BJP, Tewari asked how some parties who are talking about curbing black money deposited huge cash in their accounts just ahead of demonetisation decision, and said there was a need to investigate them. He likened Modi’s speech on December 31 to a budget speech outside the Parliament. “It has never happened before.”