DEMONETISATION Valid Or Not? : Supreme Court Constitution Bench Hearing- LIVE UPDATES

Chidambaram: No care or consideration was bestowed by the RBI to this crucial decision, and no time was given by the central govt before setting this policy into motion.

Chidambaram: It is implicit in S 26(2) that enough time and attention must have been given. This was abandoned. The process was reversed. It was a virtual command by the govt to the RBI, which merely obeyed and furnished a recommendation.

Chidambaram: My third submission is that the decision-making process was deeply flawed and is subject to judicial review. There was a perverse reversal of the process because the proposal to demonetise should have emanated from the RBI. 

Chidambaram: Therefore, my second submission is that if S 26(2) is not read down, it will be unconstitutional. I will buttress this with case laws right at the end.

Chidambaram: The govt has revealed no information on this. Last time, this court had asked the govt to keep the documents ready. Yet, nothing has been supplied - not the agenda, not the letter, not the minutes.

Nazeer J: But this is under ordinary circumstances?

Chidambaram: The provision wrt notice is ordinarily applicable, which means emergency meetings can be held. But, the provision relating to quorum is mandatory.

Chidambaram takes the court through RBI General Regulations which throws light on how meetings are to be held.

"There is no disclosure about who attended the meeting, whether there was sufficient notice."

Chidambaram: They are still holding bank the documents that I had implored Your Lordships to furnish. Nov 7 letter to RBI, agenda note of Board meeting, resolution passed, & actual decision of Cabinet. 

Chidambaram reads out the opinion of IG Patel, another Governor of the Reserve Bank and a prominent economist, who criticised the policy of demonetisation in 1978. 

Chidambaram: Against their 144 crores, we had 17 lakh crores. The multiplier is absolutely mindboggling.