Opposition parties on Monday hit out at the ruling BJP on the fifth anniversary of demonetisation, saying the decision led to loss of life and destroyed businesses.

       "Demonetisation did not bring back black money but the government gave benefits to some capitalists, thereby, harming farmers, labourers, small traders and working class people," BSP national general secretary Satish Chandra Mishra said.

       He said the "sudden decision" taken by the government led to the death of many people standing in queues outside banks.

       Samajwadi Party too organised protests at the state-level.

       According to the statement issued by former minister and state president of Samajwadi Vyapar Sabha, Sanjay Garg, "padyatras" and demonstrations were staged to highlight the "dictatorship" of the BJP.

       Terming demonetisation a "Tughlaqi decision" of the BJP to destroy and ruin the country, especially the business community, Garg said traders of all classes were ruined by the "irresponsible move".

       "The then chief minister Akhilesh Yadav gave compensation to the families of those who lost their lives due to the Tughlaqi decision of demonetisation, but the attitude of the BJP government remained insensitive. The BJP should apologise to the country," Garg said.

       Uttar Pradesh Congress spokesperson Krishankant Pandey in a statement said, "Five years of the BJP's Tughlaqi decision of demonetisation completed today but the acchey din' promised by the Modi government are still not visible, even with binoculars."

       The government's claims of checking black money and countering terrorism by demonetisation have also proved to be false, Pandey said, adding the move harmed Uttar Pradesh the most as about over 2 crore jobs would have been created in the state if decision had not been taken.

       (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)