Centre should first explain why Rs 2,000 note was introduced, says Congress MP Digvijaya Singh

Congress leader Digvijaya Singh. File Photo

Congress Rajya Sabha MP Digvijaya Singh Tuesday hit out at the Centre over Reserve Bank's announcement of withdrawal of Rs 2,000 currency notes. Digvijaya said that the government should first explain why the Rs 2,000 note was introduced, news agency PTI reported.

On what has been seen as a surprising development, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) last Friday made announcement of withdrawal of Rs 2,000 currency notes, but gave the public time till September 30 to either deposit the notes in accounts or exchange them at banks. The RBI said it had asked banks to stop issuing Rs 2,000 notes with immediate effect.

While speaking to reporters in Madhya Pradesh's Indore, Singh said, "First they (central government) should explain why these notes were introduced."

In a major decision ahead of Assembly elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Madhya Pradesh on Tuesday announced that all unauthorised colonies that have come up till December 31, 2022 will be regularised. Former MP chief minister Singh termed the state government's announcement as "meaningless".

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"They have made such announcements thousand times. Where is the notification to regularise unauthorised colonies?" he asked.

On Union minister Jyotiraditya Scindia recently saying in Shivpuri that his heart beats for local people and seeking an apology for the mistakes he may have committed, Singh said, "It is good that he has sought an apology after realising his mistakes."

According to PTI, a video of Scindia seen seeking an apology with folded hands and making the comments at an event in Shivpuri has gone viral on social media platforms.

Scindia quit the Congress in 2020 following which 22 party MLAs in Madhya Pradesh also resigned, leading to collapse of the Kamal Nath government in the state on March 20, 2020. The BJP returned to power in the state on March 23, 2020, under the leadership of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.

(With inputs from PTI)