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CoverStory CURRENCY

Rahul Gandhi is Falling rupee, rising
in focus post the fuel prices may hurt
Bharat Bandh BJP in 2019 polls

worries over US-China trade war. the economy had collapsed in the last two years and tion and printing of more 200 and 100 notes so as
“the growth rate is on the decline too... There is no to help the common man, besides recommending
EX-ALLY HITS OUT financial discipline in the country now,” the chief digital currency for higher transactions. “But the
N Chandrababu Naidu, the chief of the Telugu Desam Finance Minister Jaitley minister rued. NDA government did the exact opposite to what I
Party that was part of the ruling NDA till recently, The Telugu Desam Party had earlier this year had suggested as the convenor of digital economy.
has launched a sharp attack on the BJP-led national attributes the fall in ended its four-year-long alliance with the BJP, com- I demand that the Modi government ban 2,000 and
coalition over the weakening of the rupee against the plaining that PM Modi did not deliver on his prom- 500 notes at least now and make smaller currency
dollar and the increase in fuel prices. “Where are we ise to give Andhra Pradesh a special category sta- available for the people,” he said.
heading to,” the Andhra Pradesh chief minister, the rupee to global factors, tus that could have given the state access to higher Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has hit out
former ally of the BJP who turned into its sharpest central funding. The TDP’s exit from the national at prime minister Narendra Modi on the declining
critic this year, asked, blaming what he described saying that there is no coalition also coincided with sharper attacks on the rupee vs dollar rate, and the hike in the price of pet-
were the faulty policies of Prime Minister Narendra centre on the economy and his assessment of PM rol and diesel. Accusing Modi of doing the same thing
Modi’s government. need to panic since the Narendra Modi’s surprise decision to ban high value that he used to blame the Congress for during the
“The value of rupee is falling down rapidly with currency notes in 2016. An early supporter of the United Progressive Alliance regime, the Aam Aadmi
every passing day. I am not surprised if it touches RBI was doing whatever currency ban to unearth black money, the chief Party (AAP) leader said: “Prime minister (Modi) used
100 per dollar in the coming days. The prices of pet- minister wondered what the centre had achieved to talk a lot about rupee and petrol before becoming
rol and diesel are shooting up steeply and very soon, by going in for demonetisation. “Every citizen of the the prime minister. But now, the BJP is saying what
the price of petrol might touch Rs 100 per litre.” Naidu is necessary to deal with country has suffered a lot due to demonetisation. the Congress used to say. Earlier, the Congress was
said at a media conference in Amaravati where his Even now, liquid cash is not available and people are responsible for inflation, now it is the BJP. The com-
government the state’s new capital. “They are going the situation not able to draw money from ATMs,” he said. mon man is the one who is suffering,” he added
to hit a century. And, the rupee will also touch the Naidu, who was appointed as the convenor of
century mark. You can then buy petrol paying a dol- the committee on digital economy soon after the BANKERS’ TAKE
lar.” Naidu was unsparing in his attacks on the centre demonetisation, recalled that he had suggested A cross section of bankers observe that the Reserve
for the state of the economy as well. He claimed that banning of currency of 2,000 and 500 denomina- Bank of India (RBI), however, will not be comfort-

TEHELKA / 30 SEPTEMBER 2018 20 WWW.TEHELKA.COM TEHELKA / 30 SEPTEMBER 2018 21 WWW.TEHELKA.COM

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