The Makkal Adigaram has launched a campaign against the demonetisation of Rs.500 and Rs.1000 notes.
Its members distributed pamphlets accusing the Central government of carrying out a surgical strike against the common man to cover its failures on all fronts. The pamphlets claimed that the demonetisation would not help bring out the black money, which were stashed away in foreign countries and in various forms of investments in gold and real estate.
Black money hoarders would not be affected by the move, it claimed.
The organisation demanded why the common man should be made to suffer when they were not responsible for the rise in black money, fake currencies and corruption. Its members distributed the pamphlets to those standing in queues at banks in different parts of the city on Thursday.
“We are staging street plays in various places to create awareness among the people and asking them to resist the move,” said P.Dharmaraj, coordinator, Makkal Adigaram, Tiruchi.
The first phase of this campaign would continue till November 20, he said.
Protest in Pudukottai
Members of the district wing of the Tamil Nadu State Cooperative Bank All Employees’ Association staged a demonstration in front of the Collelctor’s Office here on Thursday to highlight their difficulties as transactions in cooperative societies and banks have come to a standstill following the demonetisation.
Led by T. Balasubramanian, district secretary of the association, they raised slogans urging the Centre to evolve ways and means for normal functioning of primary cooperative societies in rural areas.
M. Ramachandran, district president, said that secretaries could neither get old currencies from those who repaid loans nor make disbursements. “No transaction can be effected at these institutions, which form the grass-root of the banking system,” they said in a memorandum to the Collector, S. Ganesh.
Meanwhile, the serpentine queue in front of the branches of nationalised banks continued on Thursday. Indelible ink was applied on customers’ fingers. No sooner an automated teller machine was re-filled with cash, a large crowd of customers vied with one another in withdrawing the money leaving it dry within a few hours.
