In a unanimous decision, the India Supreme Court declared the electoral bonds scheme unconstitutional on Wednesday. The scheme, first established by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Union government in 2018, had previously enabled anonymous funding to political parties by individuals and corporations. The funding was facilitated through the purchase of electoral bonds from the State Bank of India. The court has now directed the State Bank of India to cease issuing any more of these bonds.
The court’s decision was issued in response to several challenges against the central government’s electoral bond theme. The court, in a landmark verdict, held that voters have a right to know about political parties and their funding sources. As part of this ruling, the court determined that the electoral bond scheme violates article 19(1)(a) of the Indian Constitution, which secures the right to information for all of the country’s citizens.
Those challenging the scheme laid out their arguments, claiming that voters have a right to information about the public and the government, including financial contributions to political parties. Petitioners further asserted that the use of electoral bonds scheme is disproportionate. For instance, through electoral bonds, the ruling party, the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) collected Rs 5,271.97 crore while the Congress party received Rs 952.29 crore from 2017 to 2022. The BJP garnered over 57% of the funds acquired through these bonds.
The court agreed with the petitioner’s arguments and referred section 29C of the Representation of People Act, 1951 as a proportionate, less restrictive alternative. The court stated that every political party has a duty to reveal contributions exceeding Rs. 20,000 under this section, prior to any amendment by the Finance Act, 2017.
Chief Justice of India Dhananjaya Yeshwant Chandrachud, who led the five-judge bench, stated that there is a close connection between money and politics and that voters should have information about political parties’ funding in order to make informed voting decisions. The chief justice also said the judgement reveals the potential for a quid pro quo arrangement due to the tight relationship between finances and politics within the electoral bond scheme and the contested provisions.
The electoral bond scheme was initially launched as an instrument to enhance party funding transparency and address black money issues in 2017. These bonds, resembling promissory notes or bearer bonds, facilitated anonymous financial support for political parties by individuals or organizations in India. The State Bank of India acted as the exclusive issuer of these bonds, which were available in denominations from Rs 1,000 to Rs 1 crore.
This ruling is especially significant with the upcoming national elections in India scheduled from April to May.
For more thorough coverage of this decision, see the original article at JURIST – News.