The real debate

Demonetisation matter had limited relevance

The procedural debate over the government’s decision to demonetise high-value currency notes in November 2016 has ended. A Constitutional Bench of the Supreme Court, comprising judges S Abdul Nazeer, B R Gavai, V Ramasubramanian, A S Bopanna, and B V Nagarathna in a 4:1 split verdict on Monday, upheld the process and noted that the exercise was valid and satisfied the test of proportionality. While reading the majority verdict, Justice Gavai noted there were discussions between the Central government and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for six months, and there was a reasonable nexus to implement such a measure.