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SBI files compliance affidavit before Supreme Court in electoral bonds case
The State Bank of India submitted electoral bonds data to the Election Commission on Tuesday.
The State Bank of India on Wednesday filed a compliance affidavit in the electoral bonds case, day after it sent all details of electoral bonds to the Election Commission as directed by the Supreme Court. In the affidavit, the public lender has shared details of electoral bonds purchased and redeemed till February 15, 2024.
According to the data provided by SBI, a total of 3,346 electoral bonds were purchased between April 1, 2019 to April 11 the same year. A total of 1,609 bonds were redeemed, the data showed.
From April 12, 2019 to February 15, a total of 18,871 electoral bonds were purchased and 20,421 bonds were redeemed, the SBI data added.
The electoral bonds data was handed over in a pen drive with two password protected PDF files. Passwords were given in a separate envelope.
The SBI had submitted details of electoral bonds to the Election Commission, day after the Supreme Court rejected its plea seeking extension till June 30.
“In the last 26 days, what steps have you taken? Your application is silent on that,” a five-judge top court bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud had asked the SBI.
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“The SBI has to just open the sealed cover, collate details and give information to the Election Commission," the bench had added.
The direction to SBI came a month after the top court in a landmark verdict had struck down electoral bonds as ‘unconstitutional’ and ‘violative of the right to information under Article 19(1)(a)’.
The electoral bonds scheme was notified by the Centre on January 2, 2018. It was pitched as an alternative to cash donations made to political parties as part of efforts to bring in transparency in political funding. The first sale of electoral bonds took place in March 2018.
Electoral bonds were encashed by an eligible political party only through a bank account with the authorised bank.
