Does Indian rupee need divine grace? Kejriwal says ‘yes’, others ‘no’

SUBHASHIS MITTRA - Wide Angle

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has triggered a debate on the necessity and possibility of having photographs of Hindu Gods and Goddess of wealth – Lord Ganesh and Goddess Lakshmi – on India’s currency notes.

His weird demand to strengthen the Indian rupee has created a flutter among people, who are discussing the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader’s motive.

On October 26, Kejriwal held a press conference where he demanded that the Government of India add the icons of the Hindu Gods' Lord Ganesha and Goddess Laxmi on Indian currency notes.

He cited the example of Indonesia, which he claimed that despite being a Muslim country had the image of Lord Ganesha on its currency notes.

Kejriwal claimed that the inclusion of the photograph of deities on the currency notes was meant for the sake of nation’s prosperity and would help to recover the country's declining economy.

But, many believe it could be a clever move to outsmart the BJP.

There is no denying the fact that the Indian currency has changed and evolved rapidly over the years.

The transition of currency management from colonial to Independent India has been a unique one with the image of Mahatma Gandhi featuring on currency notes.

"If there is a picture of Ganesh and Lakshmi ji on a note, the country will progress. I am not saying that the country will make progress only by printing their pictures, we will also work hard. People of the country will work hard. We will devise the right policies," Kejriwal has said.

"But however hard you may work, unless you get the blessings of the Almighty, hard work does not succeed...This is why I said there should be pictures of Ganesh and Lakshmi ji (on currency notes)," the AAP leader clarified after both the BJP and Congress began attacking him after he made the demand.

The AAP boss said, "I want to tell the BJP and the Congress that 130 crore people of the country want the pictures of Ganesh and Lakshmi on the note.”

The Bharatiya Janata Party has described Kejriwal's demand as an unsuccessful attempt to hide the "anti-Hindu face" of his party during Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections.

Kejriwal’s demand assumes significance against the backdrop of the weak trend of the domestic currency which has seen more than 8 per cent depreciation against the US dollar so far in 2022.

In the light of such a scenario, some dub his demand as a tongue-in-cheek swipe at the government for its “inability” to improve the health of the economy.

Some others say that by making this demand, he was flaunting his Hindu credentials in poll-bound Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh, just as he had invoked Lord Hanuman as his talisman before the 2020 Delhi Assembly elections and had visited a famous Hanuman temple in the heart of the national capital.

Quick to react, BJP spokespersons sought to remind Kejriwal that India is a secular country, while some others trashed it as a political stunt ahead of the Assembly elections in two states to garner votes.

The AAP leader countered them by saying if having the photographs of Ganesh and Lakshmi on the currency notes helps in fetching more votes, then the BJP should go ahead and reap its advantage in the upcoming polls.

Whatever be the government’s stand, Kejriwal’s appeal to print images of Hindu deities on Indian currency notes to “improve the country’s economy” has turned into a political slugfest between the AAP and the BJP, with the saffron party saying “Kejriwal’s Hindu love” has woken up just before the Assembly election in Gujarat.