The Supreme Court has delivered a landmark unanimous verdict on a series of petitions challenging the legal validity of the Central government’s Electoral Bond scheme, which allows for anonymous funding to political parties. Supreme Court has also ordered political parties to refund the electoral bonds to the respective individuals/companies.
The court emphasized the importance of transparency in the electoral process, stating that political parties are integral units in the electoral process, and information about their funding is crucial for making informed electoral choices.
The court held that the anonymity provided by the electoral bond scheme violates the right to information under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution.
Reading the verdict on the contentious issues, the Supreme Court bench said:
”Electoral bonds scheme has to be struck down as unconstitutional. The issuing bank shall forthwith stop the issue of electoral bonds. The State Bank of India shall furnish the details of donations through electoral bonds and the details of the political parties which received the contributions.”
#SupremeCourt strikes down Electoral Bond Scheme. Here is the Judgement
Video- Supreme court pic.twitter.com/PKvRdfz0a0
— Vikas Jangra (@vikasjangraji) February 15, 2024
BJP Received Highest Donations in Electoral Bond Scheme, Witnesses Significant Increase
According to a report by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) received the highest donations totaling ₹719.858 crore from 7,945 donors during the fiscal year 2022-23. This marked a significant increase of 17.12% compared to the previous financial year (2021-22), when the party received ₹614.626 crore in donations.
In contrast, the Indian National Congress (INC) received ₹79.924 crore, experiencing a decrease from the previous fiscal year by 16.27%. Similarly, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) witnessed a decrease of 39.56% in donations, amounting to ₹3.978 crore, while the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) saw a decrease of 2.99%, receiving ₹1.143 crore in donations.
Also Read – PM Modi To Inaugurate BHEL’s 1000-Crore Railway Plant; Banas Dairy, Sigra Stadium In Varanasi
Electoral Bond Scheme – Corporate Sector Dominates Donations to Political Parties
The report by ADR highlighted that corporate and business sectors were the primary contributors to political donations, accounting for 80.017% of the total contributions received by national political parties during the fiscal year 2022-23. Of the total contributions, 3,318 donations were made by corporate/business sectors, amounting to ₹680.495 crore, while 8,567 individual donors contributed ₹166.621 crore to the parties.
The BJP received substantial corporate donations, totaling ₹610.491 crore, more than eight times the total corporate donations received by all other national parties combined during the same period. The Prudent Electoral Trust emerged as the top donor, contributing a total of ₹257.15 crore to the BJP and AAP combined.
