Electoral Bonds

• Chief Justice of India referred the challenge to the validity of the electoral bonds scheme, which facilitates anonymous donations to political parties, to a Constitution Bench of five judges.
• The petitioners’ are urging to focus primarily on two issues concerning the electoral bonds scheme, that is, the legalisation of anonymous donations to political parties and the violation of citizens’ right to information about the funding of political parties, promoting corruption.
• The two issues concern violation of Articles 19, 14 and 21 of the Constitution.
• The electoral bonds scheme was passed as a Money Bill, circumventing the Rajya Sabha.

ABOUT ELECTORAL BONDS

• It is a bearer instrument, like a promissory note that can be bought by any Indian citizen or company incorporated in India.
• These can be bought individually or jointly with other individuals.
• It is payable to the bearer on demand and interest-free.
• Electoral Bonds can be purchased digitally or through cheques.
• The electoral bonds are available for purchase for 10 days at the beginning of every quarter.
• State Bank of India (SBI) branches can issue the bonds in denominations of Rs 1,000, Rs 10,000, Rs 1 lakh, Rs 10 lakh, and Rs 1 crore.
• The citizen or corporate can then donate the same to any eligible political party of his/her choice.
  • Only the political parties registered under Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 and have secured not less than 1% of the votes polled in the last general election to the House of the People or the Legislative Assembly, are eligible to receive electoral bonds.
  • The political parties can encash such bonds within 15 days of receiving them.
• If a party hasn’t enchased any bonds within 15 days, SBI deposits these into the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund.
• Anonymous cash donations have been capped at Rs 2,000.