The Aryavarth Express
Agency(New Delhi): The State Bank of India (SBI) has approached the Supreme Court, requesting additional time until June 30 to furnish the Election Commission of India with the specifics of the Electoral Bonds. The bank’s plea emphasizes the necessity for more time to unveil the details of the bonds cashed by various political entities. This request stems from the challenges associated with the complex task of decoding and matching the details of the bonds to their respective donors, a process hindered by the bank’s stringent anonymity safeguards for contributors.
The Supreme Court had previously mandated, on March 15, that SBI disclose the identities of political parties that have benefited from Electoral Bonds since April 12, 2019. This disclosure was to include all related details and be submitted to the Election Commission by March 6. The bank, however, has found the task daunting due to the lack of a centralized database for donor information and the bifurcation of bond issuance and redemption data into separate systems.
SBI’s application to the court reveals that the information about bond purchases is not centrally stored but rather dispersed across branches, complicating the process of linking donors to their donations. The bank further explained that the measures taken to ensure donor anonymity involve storing details in sealed envelopes at certain branches before transferring them to the main branch in Mumbai.
Given these complications, the bank argues that the three-week timeline set by the Supreme Court is insufficient for completing the necessary procedures. Thus, SBI is seeking an extension to comply fully with the court’s ruling.
This appeal follows the Supreme Court’s decision to invalidate the Electoral Bonds Scheme, which permitted anonymous contributions to political parties. The court also directed SBI to halt the issuance of these bonds immediately. The ruling, made by a five-judge bench, also called for the repeal of amendments to the Income Tax Act and the Representation of People Act, which facilitated anonymous donations.
The court’s directive requires the Election Commission to publish the details of the Electoral Bonds, including the date of encashment and denomination, on its website by March 13. Electoral Bonds, designed as a means for individuals and entities to contribute funds to political parties anonymously, have been the subject of contention, leading to several petitions challenging the legal amendments that introduced them.