Editor's Pick | SC asks SBI why all details of poll bonds were not released

The Supreme Court on Friday asked the State Bank of India (SBI) why it had not disclosed the unique alphanumeric numbers of individual electoral bonds to the Election Commission (EC) for publication on its official website. “In our judgment of February 15, we had directed disclosure specifically of all the details of the electoral bonds, including date of their purchase, the amount, names of purchasers, the political parties which redeemed the bonds, etc. But the bank has not disclosed the numbers of the bonds purchased and encashed. Why?” Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud, heading a five-judge Bench, asked. The court issued a notice to the bank and listed the case for March 19. The Bench further agreed to return to the EC the documents regarding electoral bonds which the poll body had given the court, in compliance with judicial orders passed on April 12, 2019 and November 2, 2023. In its judgment on February 15, the five-judge Bench had directed the EC to publish the confidential information submitted in the court, along with details of electoral bonds. However, the EC filed an application on March 14, saying that it had given the court the originals of the documents and not retained any copies. The EC said that it had handed over to the Supreme Court a sealed cover containing 106 sealed envelopes, and then sealed boxes containing 523 sealed envelopes, in two tranches in pursuance of the judicial orders of April 2019 and November 2023. “We presumed you would have retained copies,” Chief Justice Chandrachud told advocate Amit Sharma, appearing for the EC. The court ordered its Registry to scan and digitise copies of the documents in the course of the day and finish the work by Saturday. The originals will be returned to the ECI along with a digitised copy. The SBI had said that 22,217 electoral bonds were purchased and 22,030 were redeemed by political parties between April 1, 2019 and February 15, 2024. An analysis of the companies which feature among the top purchasers of electoral bonds shows that a significant number of them were under the Enforcement Directorate’s or the Income Tax (I-T) department’s scanner at some point of time in the past five years. In an editorial, The Hindu said that the electoral bond data may also help unravel whether corporate houses or individuals benefited from their donations to ruling parties at the Centre and in the States, or if the contributions were made in response to any threat of investigation and prosecution. On Friday, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman dismissed suggestions that electoral bonds were purchased by many corporates to “save themselves” from probe by investigative agencies, arguing that there was a probability that the bonds were either transferred to regional parties or were donated to the ruling party before the said probes began. Opposition Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday accused Prime Minister Modi of “running the world’s largest extortion racket”. He alleged that the funds amassed through the now scrapped electoral bonds scheme were used to split political parties like the Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party in Maharashtra, and topple the Opposition government. The Hindu’s Editorials Food factor: On the latest retail inflation data Homecoming: On the TDP’s return to the NDA The Hindu’s Daily News Quiz The BJP encashed electoral bonds worth ₹6,060 crore, the highest among all parties. Which party got the second highest share according to the data shared by the ECI? DMK BRS INC AITC To know the answer and to play the full quiz, click here. [logo] Editor's Pick 16 March 2024 [The Hindu logo] In the Editor's Pick newsletter, The Hindu explains why a story was important enough to be carried on the front page of today's edition of our newspaper. [Arrow]Open in browser [Mail icon]More newsletters SC asks SBI why all details of poll bonds were not released The [Supreme Court on Friday asked the State Bank of India (SBI) why it had not disclosed the unique alphanumeric numbers of individual electoral bonds to the Election Commission]( (EC) for publication on its official website.  “In our judgment of February 15, we had directed disclosure specifically of all the details of the electoral bonds, including date of their purchase, the amount, names of purchasers, the political parties which redeemed the bonds, etc. But the bank has not disclosed the numbers of the bonds purchased and encashed. Why?” Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud, heading a five-judge Bench, asked. The court issued a notice to the bank and listed the case for March 19. The Bench further agreed to return to the EC the documents regarding electoral bonds which the poll body had given the court, in compliance with judicial orders passed on April 12, 2019 and November 2, 2023. In its judgment on February 15, the five-judge Bench had directed the EC to publish the confidential information submitted in the court, along with details of electoral bonds. However, the EC filed an application on March 14, saying that it had given the court the originals of the documents and not retained any copies. The EC said that it had handed over to the Supreme Court a sealed cover containing 106 sealed envelopes, and then sealed boxes containing 523 sealed envelopes, in two tranches in pursuance of the judicial orders of April 2019 and November 2023. “We presumed you would have retained copies,” Chief Justice Chandrachud told advocate Amit Sharma, appearing for the EC. The court ordered its Registry to scan and digitise copies of the documents in the course of the day and finish the work by Saturday. The originals will be returned to the ECI along with a digitised copy. The SBI had said that 22,217 electoral bonds were purchased and 22,030 were redeemed by political parties between April 1, 2019 and February 15, 2024. An [analysis of the companies]( which feature among the top purchasers of electoral bonds shows that a significant number of them were under the Enforcement Directorate’s or the Income Tax (I-T) department’s scanner at some point of time in the past five years. In an [editorial]( The Hindu said that the electoral bond data may also help unravel whether corporate houses or individuals benefited from their donations to ruling parties at the Centre and in the States, or if the contributions were made in response to any threat of investigation and prosecution. [On Friday, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman]( dismissed suggestions that electoral bonds were purchased by many corporates to “save themselves” from probe by investigative agencies, arguing that there was a probability that the bonds were either transferred to regional parties or were donated to the ruling party before the said probes began. [Opposition Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday]( accused Prime Minister Modi of “running the world’s largest extortion racket”. He alleged that the funds amassed through the now scrapped electoral bonds scheme were used to split political parties like the Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party in Maharashtra, and topple the Opposition government. The Hindu’s Editorials [Arrow][Food factor: On the latest retail inflation data]( [Arrow][Homecoming: On the TDP’s return to the NDAÂ]( The Hindu’s Daily News Quiz The BJP encashed electoral bonds worth ₹6,060 crore, the highest among all parties. Which party got the second highest share according to the data shared by the ECI? - DMK - BRS - INC - AITC To know the answer and to play the full quiz, [click here](. 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