During today’s hearing, Senior Advocate Shyam Divan reiterated that a recommendation of Central Board of the RBI was a necessary requirement before the Central government could have taken the decision for demonetisation.
He added that the Union government was duty-bound to honour the promise written in bank notes of paying bearers a sum, in writ and civil courts.
On the arguments from the government that the executive route was necessary so as to tackle black money etc, he said,
“Parliamentary route always available in exigencies, but 26(2) is purely administrative action that needs the Central Board’s recommendation. The government is not helpless during exigencies.“
Divan also came down on the RBI for providing an exemption from the deadline to exchange notes to NRIs who had taken their money abroad but not those who had kept the notes in India, saying that the same was ‘arbitrary and heartless’.
When Senior Advocate Jaideep Gupta appearing for the RBI said that Divan’s client could have returned in November, Divan responded saying,
“That is a callous submission.“
Source: Barandbench
