Before the announcement of the Lok Sabha election day, the Supreme Court has taken a big decision on electoral bonds. The apex court had banned the electoral bond scheme as unconstitutional. The court said that electoral bonds are a violation of right to information. Voters have a right to know about the funding of parties. The court also said that the list of bond buyers has to be made public.
The Supreme Court said citizens have a right to know where the money comes in the hands of the government and where it goes. The court held that anonymous electoral bonds are a violation of the Right to Information and Article 19(1)(A).
The chief justice of the Supreme Court ruled that apart from electoral bonds, there were other ways to stop black money. The court observed in its verdict that the secrecy of electoral bonds is against the “right to know”. Knowing the information about funding of political parties gives clarity to people to exercise their franchise.
The supreme court’s verdict came while hearing a petition challenging the validity of the electoral bond scheme. The apex court banned the electoral bond scheme calling it unconstitutional. The court also said that SBI will have to make the data public from April 12, 2019. SBI will have to give this information to the Election Commission and the Election Commission will also disclose it.
The case was heard by a five-member Constitution bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud in November last year. After hearing the opinion for three days, the court reserved the decision in the case. The petitioner had argued in the Supreme Court that the electoral bond scheme violates the information and fundamental rights of citizens under Article 19(1), it encourages corruption.
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