After striking down Electoral Bonds scheme, SC directs SBI

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday after striking down the Electoral Bonds Scheme which allowed for anonymous funding to political parties, ordered the State Bank of India (SBI) to stop issuing Electoral Bonds immediately.

A five-judge Constitution bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices Sanjiv Khanna, BR Gavai, JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra unanimously quashed the Electoral Bonds scheme as well as amendments made to the Income Tax Act and the Representation of People Act which had made the donations anonymous.

It asked the SBI to furnish details of the political parties that received Electoral Bonds since April 12, 2019, and all the particulars received and submit them to the Election Commission of India by March 6.

The details that the SBI will furnish will disclose details of each electoral bond encashed by the political parties, which shall include the date of encashment and the denomination of the electoral bond.

The apex court said that by March 13, the ECI shall publish the details of Electoral Bonds on its official website.

The apex court further said that while the privacy of donors is important, transparency in political funding cannot be achieved by granting absolute exemptions.

Hence, it struck down the Electoral Bonds Scheme saying its anonymous nature is violative of Right to Information under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution. The infringement of the right to information is not justified, it said.

The Constitution bench held that the Electoral Bonds scheme would help the party in power to gain an advantage.

"There is also a legitimate possibility that financial contributions to a political party would lead to a quid pro quo arrangement because of the close nexus between money and politics. The Electoral Bond scheme and the impugned provisions to the extent that they infringe upon the right to information of the voter by anonymous contributions through Electoral Bonds are violative of Article 19(1)(a)," the verdict stated.

Electoral Bonds scheme cannot be justified by saying that it will help curb black money in politics, the bench held.

(ANI)