Kejriwal writes to PM Modi over pictures of gods on currency

Campaigning for the AAP in Gujarat, Kejriwal said that 130 crore people of the country wish that Indian currency notes feature images of Hindu Gods Ganesha and Laxmi.

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday said that he has repeated his demand for the images of Hindu Gods Ganesha and Laxmi to feature along with that of Mahatma Gandhi on Indian currency notes, adding that he has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the same.

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal. (HT file)

In his letter to Modi dated October 27, Kejriwal claimed that people are “very excited” about the proposal.

“Even after 75 years of independence, India is counted among the developing and poor countries. Why are so many people still living in poverty in our country?... Right policies, hard work and God’s blessings, only through their confluence will the country progress… People are very excited about it (the proposal). Everyone wants this to be implemented immediately,” the communication reads.

Campaigning for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Gujarat for the upcoming assembly elections in that state, Kejriwal said that 130 crore people of the country wish that the currency notes feature images of Ganesha and Laxmi.

“If currency notes have images of Ganesha and Laxmi, we will get their blessings and the country will develop. I am not saying that only publishing these images will lead to development. We will also make good policies and do hard work, but all this does not lead to success unless the gods give their blessings,” he said.

Kejriwal first floated the idea of having the images of Ganesha and Laxmi on currency notes at a press conference on October 26, pointing to Muslim-majority Indonesia as a country that features the image of Ganesha on its banknote.

The opposition had criticised the move, accusing Kejriwal of double-speak and “competitive Hindutva”.

BJP’s Sambit Patra tweeted, “Those who were threatening to put you in jail for celebrating Diwali, speaking against the Ram temple and insulting the Swastika and Kashmiri Hindus are Kalyug’s Kalnemi and singing songs of Ram-Ram and Laxmi-Ganesha. This is the culmination of their U-turn politics.”

Punjab Congress chief Amrinder Singh Raja Warring said.“After failing with his competitive populism, Kejirwal is now resorting to competitive Hindutva to win Gujarat. But he will fail again as people are wise enough to read into his desperate designs.”

The normal design of banknotes across the world includes a portrait of a notable citizen obverse and a different motif on the reverse side, which usually depict key buildings, cultural heritage, achievements and monuments of national importance.

In India, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has the authority to issue banknotes, and like other central banks across the world, changes the designs of currency notes from time to time. In 1969, the RBI first introduced the image of Mahatma Gandhi in a a commemorative series of notes as part of his birth centenary celebrations, depicting a seated Gandhi with the Sevagram Ashram as the backdrop.

Later, in 1987, the central bank introduced Mahatma Gandhi’s image on ₹500 notes, while the Mahatma Gandhi series of notes was introduced in 1996.

Indian currency notes also featured other images like the Lion Capital at Sarnath, the Parliament, fauna motifs such as the tiger, deer and Sambar deers, and highlighting the cultural heritage and scientific achievements of the country.

Many countries do use religious symbols and places on their currency notes. For instance, Albanian currency notes depict the Church of Vau; Czech Republic uses the St Salvator’s Church; and Russia showcases St. John the Baptist Church. Euro banknotes, meanwhile, utilise non-existent architectural structures in order to avoid the impression of a national bias.

However, the use of the images of gods is very rare, such as the Buddha in case of the Combodian riel and images of Ganesha in case of Indonesian Rupiah.