India's Supreme Court Rejects SBI's Plea for Extension on Political Funding Disclosure

Team FS

11/Mar/2024

Key Points:

India's Supreme Court rejected a plea by the State Bank of India (SBI) for more time to disclose names of individuals and companies who donated billions of rupees to political parties through an opaque funding system.
The court had previously declared the seven-year-old election funding system unconstitutional, a setback for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which was the largest beneficiary.
SBI was directed to share donor names, beneficiaries, and amounts with the Election Commission of India (ECI) by March 6, with the ECI instructed to make the information public by March 13.
Despite SBI's petition for an extension until June 30, the court ordered the bank to share the information by March 15, warning of potential consequences for non-compliance.
The election funding system, known as Electoral Bonds, allowed individuals and companies to buy bonds from SBI and donate them to political parties, totaling 165.18 billion rupees ($2 billion) up to November 2023.
The Supreme Court's decision was hailed as a victory for transparency and accountability in democracy by opposition parties.

India's Supreme Court has denied a request from the State Bank of India (SBI) for additional time to reveal the identities of individuals and companies who made substantial donations to political parties through an opaque funding mechanism. This decision follows the court's ruling that declared the seven-year-old election funding system unconstitutional, a setback particularly for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which had benefitted significantly from the system.

SBI had been instructed to disclose donor details to the Election Commission of India (ECI) by March 6, with the ECI then mandated to make this information public by March 13. Despite SBI's petition for an extension until June 30, citing the complexity of compiling the data, the Supreme Court ordered the bank to comply by March 15 or face potential consequences for non-compliance.

The Electoral Bonds system, challenged by opposition members and civil society groups, allowed individuals and companies to purchase bonds from SBI and contribute them to political parties. The total sum of such contributions amounted to 165.18 billion rupees ($2 billion) up to November 2023, according to the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), a non-governmental organization focused on election funding transparency.

The Supreme Court's decision has been celebrated by opposition parties as a victory for transparency and accountability in democracy, underscoring the significance of disclosing information regarding political funding to the public.

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India's Supreme Court Rejects SBI's Plea for Extension on Political Funding Disclosure

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