Are banknotes with the image of Lord Ganesha present in Indonesia? The fact behind what Kejriwal said

The comment by party leader Aam Aadmi Arvind Kejriwal that Indian banknotes should have images of Ganesha and Lakshmi led to great discussions. Kejriwal demanded that the notes of the Islamic country Indonesia have the image of Ganesha and why India cannot do the same. Later, Lord Ganesha’s photos on Indonesian banknotes were widely circulated on social media.

The 20000 rupee banknotes of Indonesia have been widely circulated in connection with the issue. However, the fact is that these banknotes are not fake, but are not currently in circulation in Indonesia.

According to information held by Bank Indonesia, the 20,000 Indonesian rupiah banknotes bearing the image of Lord Ganesha were withdrawn in 2008. However, Kejriwal did not mention this anywhere in his speech.

In 1998, Indonesia issued 20,000 rupee banknotes with the image of Lord Ganesha. The notes also contained a photo of the country’s leader Ki Hadjar Devantara. But it was withdrawn on December 31, 2008 along with other notes. After that they became illegal. However, it was still transferable to Indonesians for ten years after the ban.

The image of the Indonesian banknote became widespread in India after Arvind Kejriwal asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to include images of Ganesha and Lakshmi along with Gandhi on the banknotes. Aam Aadmi party workers supported Kejriwal’s statement. Many people have shared this believing that the aforementioned note is still around.

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Along with the image of Lord Ganesha, was a photo of Ki Hadjar Devantara, a prominent Indonesian leader and minister of education. Along with his withdrawal, banknotes of 10,000, 50,000 and 100,000 rupees were demonetized. Banking banknotes is a frequent practice in Indonesia for reasons of circulation, security, etc.

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Although banknotes were banned, time was also given to exchange them. The condition was that the banknote could be exchanged at any commercial bank or Bank of Indonesia for the first five years and only at the Bank of Indonesia for the next five years.

Arvind Kejriwal, who is also the Prime Minister of Delhi, raised the request without knowing any of these facts and there was a discussion in favor on social media. Many people have come forward and against Kejriwal. When the leaders of Congress and the left accused Kejriwal of leaning towards the BJP, BJP leader Sandeep Warrier humorously responded by saying, “You are not the Sangh Parivar, we are the Sangh Parivar.”