It pointed out that at present, the data available on the platform of the Election Commission of India (ECI) represents only 76 per cent of the total EBs and the voters are not aware of the details of the remaining 24 per cent of the EBs. “Thereby the SC should pass appropriate orders, directions and or verdict to the respective parties in this regard,” the CRT said in its application filed before the top court.
The petition of CRT sought a direction to the SBI to share the details of electoral bonds sold and redeemed from March 1, 2018, to April 11, 2019, including the alphanumeric number, date of purchase, denomination, names of donors and parties to the ECI.
“Once the entire Electoral Bond Scheme is held to be violative of Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution, the citizens are entitled to know the details of the donor and donee of the entire period from March 2018 onwards (the date when the scheme became functional),” the CRT said in its plea.
The Top Court in its landmark verdict had also said that the Amendments to Income Tax Act provision and the Sec 29C of the Representation of Peoples (RP) Act are declared to be ultra vires.
The CJI led bench said that the Amendment to the Companies Act (allowing blanket corporate political funding) is unconstitutional.
The Apex Court, in its verdict directed the SBI to stop issuing Electoral bonds immediately and also should disclose and submit all the details to the Election Commission by March 6.
The EC will make all donations public within one week of the receipt of the information. All EBs within the 15-day validity period shall be returned by political parties to the purchasers, the Top Court had said, in its verdict.
“Lack of privacy of political affiliation would be catastrophic. It can be used to disenfranchise voters. Right to informational privacy extends to financial contributions to political parties,” the bench of the Apex Court had said.
The EB scheme was challenged by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), the Communist Party of India (Marxist), Congress leader Jaya Thakur, and Spandan Biswal.
