Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, Nov 9: The Congress on Sunday launched a fresh attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over demonetisation, accusing his government of damaging the Indian economy through 'Notebandi' and weakening the country's democratic institutions through what it termed 'Votebandi'.

Congress general secretary in-charge of communications Jairam Ramesh alleged that both developments were contributions of the prime minister.

"Notebandi devastated the economy. Votebandi is destroying the polity. Both are the contributions of the PM," Ramesh said in a post on X.

He shared a screenshot of a media report which described the 2016 demonetisation exercise as a disaster and claimed that the decision had proved unsuccessful even after a decade.

The Congress leader's remarks came on the 10th anniversary of demonetisation, which was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a televised address to the nation on November 8, 2016.

The government had withdrawn the legal tender status of the existing Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes overnight, triggering widespread disruption as people rushed to banks and ATMs to exchange or deposit their old currency.

The government had justified the move as an attempt to combat black money, counterfeit currency and corruption, while also promoting digital transactions and formalising the economy.

However, the Congress has consistently criticised the decision, describing it as a reckless economic measure that severely affected businesses, employment and ordinary citizens.

On previous anniversaries, the opposition party has accused the Modi government of failing to achieve the objectives originally cited to justify demonetisation.

The Congress has also termed the exercise a 'monumental blunder', arguing that the government repeatedly changed its stated objectives and that the measure failed to deliver the promised results.

The latest reference to 'Votebandi' is part of the Congress's continuing criticism of the government's electoral and voter-list-related policies, particularly the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls being undertaken by the Election Commission.

The party has raised concerns over the exercise, alleging that voter-list revisions could lead to the exclusion of eligible voters. The Election Commission and the BJP have defended the revision process, maintaining that electoral rolls must be updated to ensure accuracy and remove ineligible entries.

The political exchange comes amid renewed debate over the economic and democratic consequences of major policy decisions taken during the Modi government's tenure.