Home Minister Rajnath Singh has dialled Chief Ministers of at least 10 States to monitor law and order issues being reported in the wake of the announcement made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 8 to discontinue the old Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 notes.
On November 10, two days after the announcement was made, the first number that Mr. Singh dialled was that of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. Only a day ago, the staunch critic of Mr. Modi had spoken in support of the demonetisation move.
“The call was made by the Home Minister to extend all possible help from the Centre. Bihar Chief Minister was the first one he spoke to and after that he dialled several other Chief Ministers also,” said an official at Mr. Singh’s office.
The CMs who were dialled mostly comprised the BJP-ruled States of Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Haryana, Assam and Goa. The other States were Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Bihar.
Mamata not on list
The official confirmed that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was not on the dialled list, nor was Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
Ms. Banerjee has criticised the Centre’s move and asked it to withdraw the “hasty decision” and “first put a proper action plan in place.” Mr. Kejriwal has called the ban on Rs. 500 and 1,000 notes as the “biggest scam in recent times.”
On Sunday, Mr. Singh held a meeting with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and officials of the security establishment to analyse the security complications arising out of the cash crunch.
“The main thrust of the meeting was to look for measures to reduce queues outside banks and ATMs. Another important points discussed were ways to stop rumour mongering and mischievous news that were only adding to the confusion,” said the official.
Parliament session
The Parliament session begins this week and Mr. Singh who also heads the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs (CCPA) is to meet several political leaders, cutting across party lines, for the smooth functioning of the House.
