Election Commission releases more data on electoral bonds
The Election Commission of India (ECI) uploaded more data on electoral bonds on Sunday. The information relates to disclosures by political parties, which were submitted under sealed cover following the Supreme Court's interim order on April 12, 2019. The newly published data is most likely from the period before April 12, 2019. The commission confirmed that the data from parties was submitted to the SC without opening the sealed cover.
Why does this story matter?
The ECI made the first public disclosure of the data on electoral bonds provided by the State Bank of India (SBI) on Thursday. According to the data, 1,260 companies and people bought 22,217 bonds worth Rs. 12,155.51, while 23 political parties redeemed them. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) received the highest donation, redeeming bonds worth Rs. 6,061 crore. The SC struck down the Electoral Bonds Scheme (EBS) last month, saying that it violates the citizens' right to information.
Election Commission's press release on EBs
Supreme Court returns data to election commission
The ECI said that in pursuance of another SC order dated March 15, 2024, the court's registry returned physical copies along with a digitized record of the same in a pen drive in sealed cover. On Sunday, the ECI uploaded this data. To recall, the commission released data on electoral bonds issued between April 12, 2019-February 15, 2024, last Thursday. Soon after, it requested the SC to return data from the preceding period, saying it had not retained any copies.
SC allows EC's request to return data
To upload the data, the ECI requested that the court return the sealed cover envelopes. On Friday, the Supreme Court granted the ECI's plea to return the data so that it could be made public. During the hearing, the top court also issued notice to the SBI for not furnishing electoral bond data with unique numbers and asked it to come up with a response on Monday (March 18).
Advocate for disclosure, transparency: ECI
Meanwhile, the ECI said it has consistently advocated for transparency and disclosure regarding electoral bonds, citing its actions in the Supreme Court proceedings. When the top court scrapped the EBS, it instructed the SBI to provide ECI with the electoral bonds data by March 6 and directed ECI to publish it by March 13. The ECI followed these instructions and uploaded the data to its website, citing its commitment to transparency.
