SC firm, tells SBI to share poll bond details today
Top court dismisses the bank’s plea seeking more time to provide Election Commission the details Says the information needed to be divulged by the judgment was ‘readily available’ with the bank Directs the Commission to compile and publish the data on its
The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed an application by the State Bank of India (SBI) for time till June 30 to provide details of electoral bonds purchased anonymously and their encashment by political parties.
A fivejudge Bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud, which had on February 15 struck down the electoral bonds scheme as unconstitutional, gave the bank 24 hours, that is, by the close of business hours on March 12, to provide the details to the Election
Commission (EC).
The court said the information on electoral bonds required to be divulged by the judgment was “readily available” with the bank. Once the bank forwards the details, the EC has to compile and publish the data on its official website on March 15 by 5 p.m.
Senior advocate Harish Salve, for the SBI, explained that matching the bonds purchased and names of donors with the parties which redeemed the bonds was a “timeconsuming and complex” exercise. Details were kept in two separate silos and not stored in a digital format. The judgment had capsized the “core purpose” of the electoral bonds scheme, which was “utmost secrecy”. “We have to reverse the whole process”, Mr. Salve argued.
But Chief Justice Chandrachud said the judgment had not asked the bank to “match” information to ascertain who contributed to which political parties. “We had only asked you to do a plain disclosure... We just wanted you to comply with the judgment.”
The Chief Justice said the SBI had in its own application said the information was easily accessible.
Chief Justice Chandrachud said contributors,at the time of purchase of an electoral bond, had to submit to the bank their bond applications, Know Your Customer documentation and proof of payment. Similarly, political parties, in order to redeem a bond, had to open current accounts in any of the authorised branches.
“There is no dispute that the process was followed by the bank. So, the information is available,” the court noted. Justice Sanjiv Khanna asked whether the bank wanted a specific judicial order to open the sealed covers containing the bonds’ details right here in the courtroom. “Comply with what is in black and white in the judgment,” Justice B.R. Gavai, on the Bench, addressed Mr. Salve.
Chief Justice Chandrachud pointed out that the SBI had not even bothered to mention what it had been doing for the past 26 days since the February 15 judgment.
The court said it did not want to initiate contempt proceedings against the SBI as of now. However, the Bench said it was putting the bank on notice, saying it would take action if SBI did not comply with Monday’s directions .