The new face of fake currency: Social media sellers, doorstep delivery, and a ₹17.5 crore racket

In March, Karnataka minister and Congress leader Priyank Kharge flagged a troubling trend to Prime Minister Narendra Modi—Instagram reels openly promoting the sale of counterfeit currency notes. He also cited Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s parliamentary statement, which revealed a 400 percent rise in counterfeit ₹500 notes from the Mahatma Gandhi (new) series between 2018-19 and 2023-24.

Kharge questioned the role of regulatory bodies. “If fake notes can be sold on Instagram and other platforms, why aren’t your agencies monitoring this?…