The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Tuesday said it cannot provide information about its decision to withdraw the Rs 2,000 currency note as it may affect India’s “relation with foreign state”. The central bank stated this in response to a Right to Information (RTI) request filed by Trinamool Congress (TMC) national spokesperson Saket Gokhale.

“Information sought is exempted from disclosure under section 8(1)(a) of RTI Act, 2005, as sharing of the information may adversely affect the security, strategic and economic interest of the State, relation with foreign State,” the RBI said.

(Source: Saket Gokhale's official Twitter account)

Notably, a public authority is not allowed to furnish information disclosure which would prejudicially affect the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security, strategic, scientific or economic interests of the state or the relation with foreign State Under Section 8 (1) (a) of the RTI Act,

Earlier, Gokhale asked RBI to furnish all files, correspondence, memos and file notings related to the central bank's decision regarding withdrawing Rs 2,000 notes from circulation.

Gokhale shared the RBI’s response on Twitter tagging Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

Earlier this month, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said that Rs 1.8 lakh crore additional liquidity had entered the system via deposits of Rs 2,000 notes. "If the 85 percent trend holds and all Rs 2,000 notes are returned by September, we will have Rs 3 lakh crore additional liquidity," Das said while addressing a press conference after announcing the bi-monthly monetary policy.

The governor also urged the public not to panic about the exchange or deposit of Rs 2,000 notes but should avoid a last-minute rush.

On May 19, the RBI announced the withdrawal of Rs 2,000 denomination banknotes as part of its currency management under the 'clean note policy' and permitted the exchange of such notes (up to Rs 20,000 in one go). The central bank has given the public time till September 30 to either deposit such notes in accounts or exchange them at banks.

The objective of the Reserve Bank's Clean Note Policy is to give the citizens good quality currency notes and coins while the soiled notes are withdrawn out of circulation.

The RBI introduced the Rs 2,000 notes in November 2016 to meet the currency requirement of the economy in an expeditious manner after the withdrawal of the legal tender status of all Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 banknotes in circulation at that time.

Meanwhile, customers can visit the nearest branch of a bank and provide account details. As per RBI’s guidelines, even customers without bank accounts can exchange/deposit Rs 2,000 banknotes with other denominations. Banks will then provide the request slip, which must be filled by the customer. This will require basic details such as the ‘Tenderer’ name and information on the denomination such as the number of pieces and value. The customers will also have to mention the place and date of exchange.

First Published:Jun 21, 2023 10:23 AM IST