The Delhi High Court on Monday dismissed a plea challenging notifications enabling exchange of Rs 2,000 currency notes without any requisition slip and ID proof.
A bench of Chief Justice Satish Kumar Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad rejected the petition, which has challenged the notifications by the RBI and SBI enabling exchange of Rs 2,000 banknotes without requisition slip and identity proof. A detailed order is awaited.
Petitioner and advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay submitted that a large amount of currency has reached either an individual's locker or has “been hoarded by separatists, terrorists, Maoists, drug smugglers, mining mafias and corrupt people”.
In his plea, Upadhyay had argued that the RBI has allowed exchange of notes notes without obtaining any requisition slip and identity proof and therefore, it is arbitrary and irrational, according to a report by Bar and Bench.
"It is necessary to state that RBI admits in para-2 that total value of ₹2000 banknotes in circulation have declined from ₹6.73 lakh crore to ₹3.62 lakh crore, which ₹3.11 lakh crore has been reached either in individual’s locker otherwise has been hoarded by the separatists, terrorists, maoists, drug smugglers, mining mafias & corrupt people," the plea stated.
Upadhyay submitted that he has not challenged the notification as a whole, but only assailed the provision allowing the exchange of currency without any proof of identity.
"It is for the first time that people can come to banks with money and get it exchanged. Gangsters and mafias and their henchmen can come and get their money exchanged," he said, as per the report.
The Reserve Bank of India on Friday announced withdrawal of Rs 2,000 currency notes from circulation, and existing notes in circulation can either be deposited in bank accounts or exchanged by September 30.
However, the bank notes in Rs 2,000 denomination will continue to be a legal tender.
The Rs 2,000 denomination bank note was introduced in November 2016, primarily to meet the currency requirement of the economy in an expeditious manner after the withdrawal of legal tender status of all Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 bank notes that were in circulation at that time.
(With inputs from PTI)
