Follow most comments that
immediately followed the ‘demonetisation’- news, across media, political
divides: ..."at the first instance it sounds good....but...you
know...", “ well counterfeit will be gone… but…”, “certainly the best
move… of the times”…”revolution by government” etc. These first hand positives
or hyperactive kudos, are the 'capital' that such moves garner. But this does
not mean one should go sleep with pride in the magic.
What is the difference between
declaring the aforesaid notes non-legal tenders, ‘at the stroke of midnight
hour (not when the whole world sleeps!)’ from, saying one will have time only
till end of December 2016 to get rid of/ exchange the notes. The difference I
guess is in the rhetoric and surprise with a tinge of human interest that the
first one has. It also comes at a time when previous surprises like bringing
the wealth back from Swiss bank did not quite do the trick. Rational voices
obviously asked about the domestic black money loop holes that were of a much
bigger scale!
The behemoth corporate write offs,
farmer suicide maintenance, exposure of the government for its treatment
of/position on certain sections of people like Dalits, state repression of
campuses that should be critical learning centres (and not official right wing
radio stations) and the overt communal gestures; all were threatening the
political continuity of the ruling order. So the timing too could not be
better. By the way aren’t we soon having some state elections?
On the long run people also need to
assume that all the unaccounted money held by the biggest foul players are
stacked under their pillows as 500 and 100 rupee notes in year 2016. Even if
some actually did, December 30 gives fair time for their already well oiled
brains to work something out. Doesn’t it? So there is no surprise sell for
these brainy foul players who even otherwise were blessed by aforementioned
corporate write offs. The write offs, by the way, were also magical figures.
The one lakh crore plus hardly has any surprise value. Probably it got
accounted into the nationalism tongue.
When one thinks, there are also
possibilities of many new accounts that will be opened for transactions and
more will come under tax nets (also could rope in a few more in the
extraordinarily imposed Aaadhaar system– which was pushed in as a Money bill!).
This certainly puts some money into coffers, but also helps to make a large
percentage of black money (otherwise reduced to worthless paper) accountable
and white. There is an interesting article, “Here's A Simple Idea To Fix
India's Black Money Problem Once And For All” in July 18, The Huffington Post.
There are disturbing possibilities of ‘gives and takes’.
There is obviously a lot more…I am
sure people will think beyond the rhetoric and loudness (which signify the
times, but are no guarantee for better life).
