Kejriwal to hold public meetings against demonetisation

The Delhi Chief Minister and AAP’s national Convener also plans to hold similar public meetings in poll-bound Punjab and many other parts of the country. 

In Uttar Pradesh, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief will address the rallies in Meerut, Varanasi and Lucknow on December 1, 8 and 18 respectively, party spokesperson Deepak Bajpai said.

Kejriwal, who had given a three-day ultimatum to the Centre to roll back demonetisation on Thursday, told a private news channel that he will decide his next course of action after consulting West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Kejriwal said the demonetisation drive doesn’t seem to be aimed at curbing corruption or black money or to turn a cash economy that is India into a cashless economy. “It is not possible to convert cash economy to cashless economy overnight.

It needs to be done slowly and with proper preparation. “Hong Kong ended corruption in the ’70s. Singapore did it. Even we did it in our 49-day government (in Delhi). But no one changed their currency to achieve that,” the Aam Aadmi Party leader said. He added it was achieved by taking action against the corrupt and sending them to jail. 

“It is anti-national to support demonetisation in the present form, which is the biggest scam, worth Rs 8 lakh crore, in independent India’s history,” Kejriwal said.

He will also be live on social media site Facebook at 7 pm on Saturday, to “apprise” the people on the “currency crisis” and will also “produce documents against the Prime Minister”.

Between November 20 and November 30, he will address 21 rallies in Punjab, starting from Sukhbir Singh Badal’s constituency Jalalabad.

AAP is locked in a triangular contest with the Congress and incumbent BJP-SAD alliance in the state which goes to polls early next year.

“Although the exact number of public meetings are yet to be ascertained, about 90 such meetings are being planned across the country where he will garner support against demonetisation of high value currency,” party sources said. 

A day after Finance Minister Arun Jaitley ruled out rolling back demonetisation, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday said the decision taken by a government that has “lost connect” with people smacked of “insensitivity”.

“I am very sad that FM has plainly refused to even review and consider rollback. Modi govt has lost connect wid people n has become very insensitive,” Kejriwal tweeted. The Delhi Chief Minister and his Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee had on Thursday demanded that demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes be rolled back within the next three days. 

The AAP chief also took on ‘bhakts’ (a term loosely used to describe fanatic supporters) of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for allegedly intimidating voices who oppose the scheme. “Modi bhakts are resorting to thuggery in the open. They indulge in sloganeering in Modi’s name. Don’t be scared of them. Reply and shut them up,” Kejriwal tweeted.