The Supreme Court of Bharat, delivered a unanimous verdict on a batch of pleas challenging the legal validity of Central government’s Electoral Bond scheme which allows for anonymous funding to political parties.
The apex court held that the bonds violate the right to information(RTI) and Article 19(1) and held that the scheme has to dismissed for being ‘unconstitutional’.
The bench consisting of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, Justices Sanjeev Khanna, BR Gavai, JB Pardiwala and Manoj Mishra, pronounced that politcal parties are significant aspects of the electoral process and thus, information about the funding the parties receive is also important when making electoral choices.
While pronouncing the order, the apex court also instructed the SBI, the only bank which is authorised to issue or encash electoral bonds to forthwith stop issuing any such bonds. It also asked the SBI to furnish all the details of Electoral Bonds enchashed by the politcal parties.
Headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, a five-judge Constitution bench had reserved its decision on November 2 last year. The electoral bonds scheme, implemented by the government on January 2, 2018, was introduced as a solution to replace cash donations and enhance transparency in political funding.
The State Bank of India shall submit the details of electoral bonds purchased since the interim order of the Court dated April 12, 2019 till date to the Election Commission of India. The details shall include the date of purchase of each electoral bond, the name of the purchaser of the bond and the denomination of the electoral bond purchased.
SBI must disclose details of each electoral bond encashed by political parties which shall include the date of engagement and the denomination of the electoral bonds”, the court said. The court added, “SBI shall submit the above information to the ECI within three weeks from the date of this judgement that is by March 6, 2024”.
Electoral bonds function as a financial instrument, allowing individuals and businesses to contribute funds to political parties discreetly, without disclosing their identities. According to the provisions of the scheme, any citizen of India or entity incorporated or established in the country can purchase these bonds, available in various denominations ranging from ₹1,000 to ₹1 crore. These bonds can be obtained at all branches of the State Bank of India (SBI), and the donations made through them are interest-free.
Comments