‘Biggest safai of 2025’: Woman finds Rs 2 lakh in old Rs 2,000 notes during Diwali cleaning

A routine Diwali cleaning led to a surprising discovery for a family when a Reddit user revealed that his mother found Rs 2 lakh worth of discontinued Rs 2,000 notes hidden in an old DTH decoder.

Posting under the title “Biggest Diwali Safai 2025”, the user said that his father most likely kept the pink packets there when demonetisation took place.

“During Diwali safai, my mom found ₹2 lakh in old 2000 rupee notes… hidden inside an old DTH box probably kept there by my desi father in times of demonetisation. We haven’t told her yet. And please suggest how to proceed with this,” the user wrote on Reddit.

The photo of the carefully packaged notes quickly went viral, generating thousands of views and lively discussion in the comments. Several commentators reminded readers that the ₹2,000 note was officially withdrawn from circulation by the Reserve Bank of India in 2023, and said holders should use RBI-designated channels to exchange or deposit the notes.

“You can take them to the RBI,” said one user. Responding to this, a user commented, “₹2 lakh is a big amount bro; since it is cash, it is most likely black money. The RBI will question OP a lot. If you are planning to take it to the RBI, consult your CA first and ask his advice on what excuses you will tell the RBI.”

“They are still legal tender despite being phased out. They can only be exchanged at designated RBI offices with a limit of 20,000,” said a third user.

“Feko mat ise mujhe de do (one person’s trash is another person’s treasure),” a fourth user commented.

“Just go to your nearest RBI and exchange after completing the declaration, these ₹ 2000 notes are not demonetised, they are just withdrawn from circulation, but remember to exchange in 5 to 10 batches, exchanging ₹ 2 lakhs in a single batch might cause you a little problem. Different people will also help,” said another user.