In India, if there is money, there is politics. In context to politics, political parties hide much of their financial assets and capital, mainly adding to the corruption in the country.
Observing the main key problem of the money in the hands of the political parties, and to have fair elections and equal opportunities, a good financial statement and an insight into their capital power were needed, to curb the monetary issue and corruption pattern, the then BJP-led government introduced the epic Electoral Bonds Scheme in 2018.
Electoral bonds are financial instruments which the Government of India introduced in 2018 to facilitate transparent political funding. These bonds are like promissory notes that can be purchased from select banks and are used to donate money to political parties. One of the key features of electoral bonds is anonymity, as the donor’s identity is not disclosed to the public or even to the receiver party.
State Bank Of India (SBI) was selected as a depositor of the bond purchased by the various stakeholders, However, electoral bonds have sparked controversy due to concerns about transparency and accountability in political funding.
WHAT IS THE MAIN CONTROVERSY?
Critics argue that the anonymity of donors can lead to increased corruption and the influence of black money in politics. They also claim that electoral bonds favour the ruling party, as the scheme allows for unlimited donations from individuals and corporations without disclosing their identities. This has led to many cases of money laundering and cases primarily against the ruling government.
The Supreme Court found the arrangement unconstitutional and ordered SBI to disclose the facts, identities, and capital holdings of the various parties. The Supreme Court declared clearly on Friday (March 15) that the State Bank of India (SBI) must publish electoral bond numbers in addition to the information it has already disclosed about bond purchase and redemption. The latest phase in the court-mandated disclosure process concerns election bond details.
The information has been put up in the public domain by the Election Commission of India (ECI) after SBI was ordered by the Supreme Court on March 12. The Apex Judiciary Had directed the ECI to host this information on its website by March 15. The SBI supplied this data in two sets. The first set contains the date of purchase of each electoral bond, the name of the purchaser of the bond, and the denomination of the bond purchased. In total 22,217 bonds were purchased between April 1, 2019, and February 15, 2024, and 22,030 bonds were encashed by political parties in the same period.
The BJP cashed electoral bonds of ₹6060.5 crore, the largest among all parties, from April 12, 2019 to January 24, 2024. Despite several charges that SBI was directed, controlled, and manipulated by the ruling parties, the BJP repeatedly attempted to demonstrate that the money was fair in a major national party.
In recent decades, there have been numerous instances and incidents of eruptions of transparency in the framework of electoral ties, alleging the ruling party guilty in the media trials. Read a case study –
Despite these complaints, the government has supported electoral bonds as a mechanism to protect donors’ privacy and security while increasing openness in political spending. The topic is still contentious, with continuous discussions about the need for reforms to make political funding more open and accountable.