Demonetization: Detailed Drama of How Modi Checkmated Pakistan’s Devastating Assault
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Monday,
November 28, 2016
All the
chairpersons and MDs of India’s top banks were meeting at Reserve
Bank of India’s headquarters on the 15th floor of the Mint Street office
in a special session that started at 7 pm. In Delhi, on the other hand,
the top Cabinet ministers of the Modi government were meeting over an agenda
regarding MoUs between India and Japan.
None of
the top bank chiefs or the ministers of the government were aware of what
was to happen.
The Cabinet meeting ended
at 7.30 pm and the PM went to meet the President to inform him about the
plan. The ministers were instructed to remain in the meeting hall.
The bankers on the other hand, were discussing the situation from the
Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) in the economy.
Just
before 8 PM, the TV sets were switched on to listen to the PM, with the
understanding that the meeting would continue after the PM address. Of
course, the announcement from the PM was going to be earth-shattering for most
bankers who had to rush back to their offices to handle the situation arising
from the ban of Rs 500 and Rs 1000!
The story
of demonitization starts way back in at least 2010 with a company named De
La Rue and its role in fake currency in India. Sometime
during 2009-10, the CBI had raided around 70-odd Indian bank branches along the
India-Nepal border and found counterfeit currency with them. That sent
shock signals all over the intelligent community. Upon investigation,
however, the intelligence officials found something even more scary! The
branches had received the currency not from some smugglers, but RBI itself! RBI was sending counterfeit
notes to the bank branches around the country!
When the
CBI raided the RBI, it found the same counterfeit currency in the RBI vaults in
Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes. The Central Bank of the country had been
compromised beyond anyone’s imagination! The counterfeit and fake
currency which Pakistan was pushing into India was being collected and
distributed by none other than the Reserve Bank of India!
Almost like real…
In a
little known case involving counterfeit currency caught in UP and Bihar, the
defending lawyer rather nonchalantly argued that what was the proof that it was
fake? When the currency was sent to the Indian government labs, they
indeed confirmed that the currency nabbed from the ISI agents was actually
real! When sent to foreign labs, it was found out that the currency was
so close to real that it was extremely difficult to prove it being
counterfeit. In fact, the small difference that helped them prove it was
not real was probably inserted on purpose!
Such was the confidence and arrogance of the counterfeiters!
It was
found by the CBI on further investigation that the mischief was happening at
the end of De La Rue, a company from whom RBI imports 95% of its currency
paper. In fact, RBI’s buy accounts for over 30% of De La Rue’s
profits. At that time, De La Rue was blacklisted by
the government and the company came to the point of bankruptcy with 2000 metric
tonnes of paper lying unused! At that time, the De La Rue CEO James
Hussey – godson of Queen Mother herself – resigned over what was called
“paper quality issues”, which sounded fishy to begin with!
“We don’t
know whether the paper disintegrates under a drop of rain or whether there is
just a fly in a roll of paper somewhere,” said one source. “The statement is so
full of holes that is has created further suspicion.”
De La Rue
said the irregularities were of a “serious nature” but that it was “confident
that neither the physical security nor the security features incorporated in
the paper have been compromised for any customer and that the irregularities
referred to relate only to testing of paper specifications at the relevant
facility”.
=================================================
Meanwhile,
in 2010 another serious security lapse was exposed! : Outsourcing of
Currency Printing by Government: Height of Betrayal
The
government had, unbeknownst to anyone, had outsourced the printing of
currency notes to US, UK and Germany – amounting to Rs 1 lakh crores!!
The entire economic sovereignty of India was at stake!
The RBI
had in 1997-98 outsourced printing of 2,000 million pieces of Rs 100 notes and
1,600 million pieces of Rs 500 notes to US, UK and Germany amounting to Rs 1
lakh crore. The committee, after questioning central bank officials, said the
reasons provided were far from convincing.
RBI had
said the soilage factor and bad condition of notes resulted in the decision.
The panel observed that RBI’s system of assessment with respect to demands and
supply of bank notes in the country was off the mark resulting in a gap. (source)
The three companies to
whom the Indian currency was outsourced were American Banknote Company (USA),
Thomas De La Rue (UK) and Giesecke and Devrient Consortium (Germany).
On
November 3, 2011 a complaint was received by the Central Vigilance Commission
(CVC) signed by “unnamed officers of the Ministry of Finance” – who said that
the security was compromised not just by De La Reu, but also other companies
– French firm Arjo Wiggins, Crane AB of USA and Louisenthal, Germany!
What is
most disturbing is that the information of compromise in security features of
the paper for currency had at different times been withheld from the
Home and Finance Ministry of India.
Following
the quality breach by De La Rue, in September-October 2010, the government
tested samples of currency paper supplied by other companies as well. On
November 3, 2010, BRBNMPL ( Bharatiya Reserve Bank Note Mudran Private Ltd) —
which signs currency note contracts on behalf of the RBI — wrote to the
Directorate of Currency, Ministry of Finance, that currency paper supplied by
Crane AB of USA and Louisenthal, Germany, had failed tests in Hoshangabad as
well but cleared re-tests at the suppliers’ foreign laboratories.
The
complaint notes, “BRBNMPL in their letter of 3rd November 2010, concealed the
failure of paper supplied by Arjo Wiggins ( a French company) from the Ministry
of Finance as detected in the tests conducted on Arjo Wiggins paper at
Hoshangabad”.
In 2015,
after Modi sought help in investigations in the fake currency notes from the
US, it came out that the German company Louisenthal was
also selling raw notes to Pakistan, resulting in a ban on the company.
The Home
Ministry has barred a German company, Louisenthal, from selling bank note paper
to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) after it discovered that the firm was also
selling raw notes to Pakistan, according to a senior official.
“We are
only keeping our interests in mind,” the official told The Indian Express. “We
have proof that high-quality fake Indian currency notes are being produced in
Pakistan and pushed into India through Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka and
Vietnam. The availability of a common supplier could be one of the reasons
behind such high-quality fake notes.”
This is
how the Indian currency was compromised at every point – RBI, Home Ministry,
Finance ministry, and the Indian and Foreign printing presses. Worse of
all, our entire currency production was outsourced to unscrupulous forces who
were merrily sharing the real stuff with Pakistan who was happily and
arrogantly snubbing us and creating a havoc with our economy!
=================================================How Pakistan was Check-mated?
The free
flow of Indian currency paper to Pakistan encouraged its government to set up 5
printing presses to print fake currency notes.these were smuggled to Nepal
and Bangladesh (often on PIA flights). The currency entered India via UP
and Bihar (Nepal border), via Malda in West Bengal (from Bangladesh), via
Rajasthan border, Punjab border and via Chennai and Mangalore through the
Indian expats from Gulf.
Routes of
Fake Currency to India (Courtesy IndiaToday)
Pakistan
used to pump in money to fund student bodies (like in JNU and Jadhavpur), media
and journalists and also political parties to completely influence the
elections.
=================================================TThe “Imminent” Assault
Given the
aggression with which the Modi government has acted against Pakistan and given
its options against Indian – specifically the Surgical Strikes and the heavy
bombardment such that Pakistan had to beg India to
stop beating them up! – Pakistan wanted another front for a major strike!
As
per General GD Bakshi, a
prominent security and defense analyst, India has some Rs 16 trillion* of
Rs 500 and Rs 1000 in circulation (which is 96% of the entire money
supply). Pakistan was already printing Rs 15 trillion (Rs 500 / Rs 1000)
with a view to push them in India to completely “unhinge” the Indian economy in
what Gen Bakshi calls an “Economic Pearl Harbour”!
This
would have led to unprecedented terror strikes and runaway inflation and steep
price rise, which would have spelt doom for India in many ways.
On the
night of Nov 8th, when the Cabinet Ministers and the top bankers were caught
unawares by the announcement of the Indian PM Modi on the ban on the notes – an
act in extreme secrecy; all efforts to save Pakistan and its network were
thwarted.
Pakistan
was checkmated.
All those
whom you see now coming together to fight demonetization know exactly what was
being planned and what led to all this. If they still choose to fight
this act by the Modi government, you should know exactly from which team they
are fighting this existential war of India’s future! And, with the
context of how RBI, Home and Finance Ministry, and banks were compromised over
the years, one can very well understand the reason for extreme secrecy and
quick action – which the critics ironically call “knee jerk” and “unprepared
government plan”.
*
Gen GD Bakshi mentions another figure of the number of notes. The
credible figure of currency in circulation is the one mentioned here with the
link
==================================
Important
information related to the FICN (Fake Indian Currency Notes) issue
Let us
also look at other information which is important to fully understand the
situation around the currency notes circulation by Pakistan.
Changes
in De La Rue and Printing notes in India
There are
only so many companies in the world with the expertise to produce the currency
paper. De La Rue, since its rather ignominious episode with the Indian
currency and being close to bankruptcy has undertaken a complete rehaul of the
company. And with a new management, it has and is helping India to create
production plants in India.
The
printing facility in Mysuru (of Bhartiya Reserve Bank Note Mudran Private Ltd
(BRBNMPL) was set up with De La Rue Giori (now KBA Giori, Switzerland).
Now another facility is coming up at Salboni with help from Komori Corporation,
Japan. It is important to know that indigenous note mills in India will
be able to take care of 70% of the domestic currency needs.
This is
where the Rs 2000 notes will also be printed. In an attempt to
participate in “Make in India”, the erstwhole De La Rue is working with the
Indian government to establish the mills here
in India.
So De La
Rue is keen to contribute to the PM’s initiative, by bringing investment,
expertise, knowledge and best practice to currency production in India. Given
the opportunity to partner with India, we hope to create a regional hub for
research and development, as well as local manufacturing facilities for the
supply of security features for the next generation of India’s banknotes,
passports and identity documents.
We need
to make sure that ultimately India is able to work through the technology with
more reliable partners and eventually on our own to have our important paper
needs taken care of – currency, Aadhar and passport.
(Source-http://drishtikone.com/demonetization-detailed-drama-modi-checkmated-pakistans-devastating-assault/
)
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