Refusing Rs 10 coin in UP may invite sedition case

AGRA: Pulkit Sharma has a pile of Rs 10 coins sitting in a basket atop his fridge.The heap has been growing over the past 2-3 months since Sharma, an executive with a private firm in Bareilly , continued to accept the coins from shopkeepers and others while nobody took them back. Now, he can hope to get rid of them.

Coming down hard on those circulating rumours and messages on WhatsApp that the coin had been withdrawn and it was no longer legal tender, the district magistrate of Pilibhit said on Saturday that anybody refusing to accept the currency could be charged with sedition.

“The Rs 10 coin is a national currency and no one has the right to refuse it as the government of India promises to pay the value of the currency to the bearer. According to RBI rules, those who refuse to accept the Indian currency can be liable for action under section 124A (sedition) of IPC. And we will strictly enforce it,“ DM Masoom Ali Sarwar said at a press.

For the past 2-3 months, several districts in UP have been hit by rumours that the coin is no longer legal tender, following which citizens stopped accepting them.

This continued despite announcements by the administration and banks that the coin, introduced in 2010, was very much in circulation. On September 20, RBI clarified the coin was valid and anyone refusing it was liable to face legal action.Even that didn't help. Shopkeepers, kiosks owners and autorickshaw drivers in various districts of UP , in Delhi and many parts of neighbouring Haryana refuse to accept the Rs 10 coin these days.

All through August and September, banks in the region witnessed residents queuing up to exchange their coins.

Pankaj Saxena, lead district manager for banks in Agra, told TOI, “There is no such move by RBI to withdraw the 10-rupee coin. Besides, an FIR could be registered against a person for refusing a legal form of money . I have come across this rumour which is doing the rounds.“