Supreme Court slams SBI for not sharing 'complete data' on electoral bonds; check details
During the hearing of ECI's appeal, the Supreme Court bench raised concerns over incomplete information, particularly the absence of alphanumeric numbers associated with the bonds, crucial for transparency in identifying purchasers and parties redeeming the bonds.
FollowFollowing the Election Commission of India's (ECI) published the details of electoral bonds data, the Supreme Court on Friday (March 15) took notice of discrepancies in the disclosure process. The apex court highlighted the State Bank of India's failure to fully comply with its earlier directives, prompting the issuance of a notice to the public sector bank and a subsequent response sought on Monday.
The electoral bonds data, that was available on the ECI's website, revealed Future Gaming and Hotel Services as the leading purchaser. However, during the hearing of ECI's appeal, the Supreme Court bench raised concerns over incomplete information, particularly the absence of alphanumeric numbers associated with the bonds, crucial for transparency in identifying purchasers and parties redeeming the bonds.
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Senior advocate Prashant Bhushan said the court's stance, indicating the insufficiency of information provided by the SBI to the ECI. Consequently, the court directed the digitization and scanning of all electoral bonds data, with original documents to be returned to the ECI for upload by March 17.
During the proceedings, Rajya Sabha MP and advocate Kapil Sibal advocated for the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the matter thoroughly, similar to previous high-profile cases.
He also highlighted the need for scrutiny regarding electoral bond data and donations to PM-CARES, urging a comprehensive investigation into fund allocation among political parties.
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