Electoral bonds case
In a major blow to anonymity in political funding, the Supreme Court on Monday rejected the State Bank of India’s (SBI) plea for more time and ordered it to disclose details of electoral bonds to the Election Commission (EC) by the close of business on March 12th.
This action follows a landmark verdict on February 15th, where the top court deemed the electoral bond scheme “unconstitutional” and ordered disclosure of donor information. The court had initially directed SBI, the authorized bank under the scheme, to submit details by March 6th.
The bench, led by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, expressed frustration with SBI’s request for an extension until June 30th. They noted the bank’s application itself indicated the information was readily available, albeit stored in “silos” at different branches.
“In the last 26 days, what steps have you taken? Your application is silent on that,” Justice Chandrachud pointedly questioned the bank’s efforts to comply with the February 15th judgment.
Harish Salve, representing SBI, argued the need for more time to collate and match details from separate locations. However, the court clarified it did not require matching donor and donee information, but simply a “plain disclosure” as per their previous ruling.
The court also directed the EC to compile and publish the received details on its official website by March 15th, 5 pm. Additionally, they demanded an affidavit from SBI’s chairman and managing director confirming compliance with the order.
The hearing revealed SBI had already stopped issuing electoral bonds as per the court’s February 15th directive. However, the court’s stern questioning suggests they were not satisfied with the bank’s pace in complying with the disclosure order.
This development marks a significant shift towards transparency in political funding. With the Supreme Court’s firm hand, the veil of secrecy surrounding electoral bonds is set to be lifted by tomorrow.
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