Category Center for the Study for Finance and Economics

Supreme Court Decision on Demonetization

A flawed process led to erroneous policy which is counterproductive and which resulted in not only damage to democracy but to huge adverse impact on the public, especially the poor. The process by which a policy is arrived at, also determines the outcomes. Can it then be said that the process was legal, even if formally, so the achievement of the objectives does not matter? The Supreme Court’s majority judgment on demonetization is based primarily on the premise that demonetization had a `reasonable nexus’ with the objectives sought to be achieved.

Fiscal Deficit as a Shape-Shifter in India

The fiscal deficit created now translates into a higher debt burden that future generations have to service. Is that fair? It is more than fair. In the misty mornings of peak winter, a flock of sharp-beaked, joyless birds takes flight in the capital – Fiscal Deficit Hawks, who swoop down on North Block, where harried finance ministry officials race against time to prepare the Union government’s annual budget, to screech sharp orders to slash the fiscal deficit.

RBI Affidavit Obfuscates rather than Clarifying

The government affidavit filed on November 16 justified demonetization by claiming that it was a part of a bigger policy push to digitize and formalize the economy – in its view a beneficial step. The affidavit, in paragraph 15 justifies the decision to demonetize the large denomination currency notes by stating that it was a “well-considered decision” taken after “extensive consultation with the Reserve Bank of India (‘RBI’) and advanced preparation”. The implication is that if the decision was wrong, it is the RBI’s (the expert’s) fault.

Debt-Burden for Future

Fiscal Deficit Hawks, who swoop down on North Block, where harried finance ministry officials race against time to prepare the Union government's annual budget, to screech sharp orders to slash the fiscal deficit. The fiscal deficit created now translates into a higher debt burden that future generations have to service. Is that fair? It is more than fair.

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