Supreme Court Grants Centre's Final Chance in Kashmiri Currency Probe

The Supreme Court gave the Centre a last opportunity to respond to a PIL demanding a CBI probe into the RBI's alleged exchange of defaced currency notes worth Rs 30 crore. The notes are said to belong to a Kashmiri separatist group, prompting calls for a court-monitored investigation.

The Supreme Court has provided the Centre with a final chance to respond to a public interest litigation (PIL) calling for a CBI investigation. The PIL scrutinizes the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) decision to exchange defaced currency notes amounting to Rs 30 crore, which allegedly belonged to a separatist group from Kashmir.

A bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan emphasized that sufficient time had already been granted for the Union of India to submit its reply. Thus, in the interest of justice, they extended the deadline by four weeks.

The PIL, filed by Satish Bhardwaj in 2013, alleges that the Jammu branch of the RBI illegally exchanged the notes associated with the separatist group 'Kashmir Graffiti'. Bhardwaj argued that exchanging currency in violation of RBI regulations requires judicial scrutiny and an investigative probe to maintain peace and stability in the Jammu and Kashmir region.

(With inputs from agencies.)