SC asks states/UTs to decide on plea seeking to conduct yatras on poll awareness
The bench was told that such orders prohibit all kinds of assemblies, meetings and demonstrations during the duration of elections.
The Supreme Court on Monday asked the Centre and the RBI to reply as to why people were not being allowed to deposit demonetised currency notes till 31 March as promised.
"Issue notice returnable by 10 March," a bench of Chief Justice J S Khehar and Justices D Y Chandrachud and S K Kaul said and asked petitioner Sharad Mishra to serve the copy of its notice to the Centre and the Reserve Bank of India during the course of the day.
Several petitions were also filed by companies and individuals over the government going back on its decision to extend the date of depositing demonetised notes till 31 March.
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The plea referred to the speech of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 8 November 2016, when he said that citizens would be allowed to deposit the demonetised notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 beyond the cut-off date of 31 December 2016 till 31 March 2017.
“There may be some who for some reason, are not able to deposit their old 500 or 1,000 rupee notes by 30 December 2016. They can go to specified offices of the Reserve Bank of India up to 31 March, 2017 and deposit the notes after submitting a declaration form," Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in his address to the nation on 8 November.
Subsequently, a notification was issued by RBI spelling out that people may deposit demonetised currency notes even after 31 December 2016, at specific RBI branches up to 31 March 2017, after complying with certain procedural requirements.
The central bank on 31 December designated its five offices in Mumbai, New Delhi, Chennai, Kolkata, and Nagpur to exchange defunct currency notes post the 50-day demonetisation period that ended on 30 December.
The bench also considered the argument that the RBI's last ordinance, which permits only those persons who were outside India during the stipulated period to deposit the demonetised currency notes till 31 March, is a breach of assurances given by the Prime Minister and the RBI.
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