Last week, a draft bill that made its way online was talking about banning cryptocurrency in India. However, no laws have been passed regarding the ban and the Indian central bank which is actively involved in the decision had refused to comment on this matter.
The bill spurred a lot of debate among the Indian economists and businessmen alike. Hence, it was necessary for the Government to step up and release an official statement. The members of the Upper House of the Indian Parliament, Mr. Dharmapuri Srinivas and S. Gnanathiraviam voiced this concern in the parliament and Mr. Anurag Singh Thakur, the Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs, addressed the queries raised by Srinivas and Gnanathiraviam. Mr. Srinivas and Mr. Gnanathiraviam wanted to know whether the government has banned cryptocurrency in India or not, and if they have, they asked to disclose the details.
Mr. Thakur confirmed that no such decision has been made by the government and said,
The issue of permitting trading in cryptocurrencies is currently under examination by an Inter-Ministerial Committee(IMC). – Mr. Thakur
He further mentioned, “Presently, there is no separate law for dealing with issues relating to cryptocurrencies.” Without any proper consultation and weighing in the ramifications, the government cannot deal with or be done away with a currency which holds such an ambiguous position worldwide.
Srinivas has also inquired if the government has taken note of the prevalence of cryptocurrency in the country. Thakur answered that the IMC has been set up under the Finance Secretary of India and that the IMC has submitted the report to the government. He further added, “No decision on licensing and authorizing any entity or company to operate such schemes or deal with Bitcoins or any virtual currency has been made as yet.”
Keeping in mind the existing laws and Bitcoin legality, the question about the possible action to be taken against those who are responsible for running the cryptocurrency in the market are raised. Thakur replied that the general penal codes are applied to cryptocurrencies due to the absence of any rules pertaining to crypto at the moment.
