SC declines to consider individual cases for accepting demonetised notes

The Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to consider individual cases seeking acceptance of demonetised currency notes of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 denominations and asked the petitioners to approach the government with a representation.

A bench of Justices BR Gavai and Vikram Nath said after the constitution bench judgment, the court does not think to exercise its jurisdiction under Article 142 of the Constitution in individual cases to accept demonetised currency notes. However, the bench allowed the individual petitioners to approach the government with a representation.

The bench said petitioners may have genuine grievances, but in view of the upholding of the enactment, no relief could be granted by this court.

It further added if petitioners are not satisfied with the response of the Central government, then they could move the high court concerned.

As a counsel submitted, "Why should such people be made to suffer?", the bench said that genuine hardships may be caused, but it cannot be a ground for this court to interfere, and the matter should be examined by the government.

The bench directed the government to decide the representation and examine the individual grievances within a period of 12 weeks.

In January this year, the Supreme Court, in a majority judgment, upheld the Centre's decision to demonetise the Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 denomination notes, saying the November 8, 2016 notification (demonetisation) does not suffer any flaws in the decision-making process and also satisfies the test of proportionality.

The top court noted that whether demonetisation of only Rs 500 denomination notes ought to have been done or the denomination of only the notes of Rs 1,000 ought to have been done, is an area which is purely in the domain of the experts and beyond the arena of judicial review.