Supreme Court Junks PIL Alleging RBI Exchanged Rs30 Crore Currency Defaced by Separatist Group

Mohsin Dar (Bar and Bench) 13 January 2025

Investor Interest

The Supreme Court recently dismissed a public interest litigation (PIL) petition alleging that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) exchanged currency notes worth Rs30 crore that were defaced by a Kashmiri separatist group in 2013 (Satish Bhardwaj V/s Union of India).

A Bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh dismissed the plea, which had sought a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the matter.

The Court was informed by the RBI that the petitioner, Satish Bhardwaj, had suppressed the fact that he was a dismissed employee of the RBI.

The Court emphasized that withholding material facts, such as the petitioner's dismissal, undermined the credibility of the PIL.

"We are not inclined to entertain this writ petition purportedly filed in public interest. The same is, accordingly, dismissed. However, the issue, if so required to be adjudicated, shall be gone into an appropriate case," the Court said in its January 10 order.

The petitioner, Satish Bhardwaj, approached the Supreme Court in 2019. According to reports, in 2013, a Kashmiri separatist group issued a statement on social media, announcing that it had defaced Indian currency notes worth around Rs30 crore by stamping separatist slogans on it over the course of four months.

Bhardwaj claimed that these notes were exchanged by the Jammu Regional Branch of the RBI, in violation of the RBI Act and the RBI (Note Refund) Rules, 2009.

In 2020, the top court had noted that the case involved sensitive issues while seeking a status report.

However, after Bhardwaj admitted to being a dismissed employee of the RBI, the Court found it inappropriate to entertain the PIL further.

Accordingly, the Court dismissed the PIL. It clarified that the issues raised in this plea could be examined in a more appropriate case.

Courtesy: Bar & Bench

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