Adversitement
SBI Seeks Extension to Submit Electoral Bond Details to Election Commission
Published On : 2024-03-05T16:15:58+0530 [ IST ] |
Author : Mayur_Tembhare
Home
India / New Delhi :
The State Bank of India (SBI) has filed an application with the Supreme Court seeking an extension until June 30 to submit details of Electoral Bonds to the Election Commission of India.
In its application, SBI explained that it requires additional time to disclose information regarding electoral bonds encashed by political parties. The bank cited practical difficulties with the decoding process and the timeline set for it.
The Constitution bench of the Supreme Court had directed SBI on March 15 to furnish details of political parties receiving Electoral Bonds since April 12, 2019, to the Election Commission by March 6.
According to SBI, decoding the Electoral Bonds and matching donor information would be a complex process due to stringent measures ensuring donor anonymity. Retrieving information from various sources and matching data from different silos would be time-consuming.
SBI highlighted that details of bond purchases are not centrally maintained, making it challenging to match donor information with bond issuance and redemption data. The bank stated that donor details were sealed at some branches and later deposited at its main branch in Mumbai to protect anonymity.
The bank emphasized that the three-week timeline set by the court would not be sufficient to complete the entire exercise. Therefore, SBI requested an extension to comply with the court's judgment.
The Supreme Court had earlier invalidated the Electoral Bonds scheme, which allowed for anonymous funding to political parties, and directed SBI to cease issuing Electoral Bonds immediately. The court ordered SBI to furnish details of each Electoral Bond encashed by political parties, including the date of encashment and denomination.
Electoral Bonds are instruments for contributing funds to political parties, available for purchase by individuals, companies, firms, or associations of persons incorporated or established in India.
Various petitions challenging amendments made to different statutes facilitating political party funding were filed before the Supreme Court, leading to the court's directives regarding Electoral Bonds.
Source : DNA
Tags : Election Commission , electoral bonds , Supreme Court , State Bank of India , anonymity , donors , SBI , decoding , political parties , Extension ,
Summary : The State Bank of India (SBI) has requested an extension until June 30 from the Supreme Court to provide details of Electoral Bonds to the Election Commission of India. SBI cited practical difficulties in decoding the bonds and matching donors' information due to measures ensuring donor anonymity. The Supreme Court had earlier ordered SBI to furnish details of political parties receiving Electoral Bonds since April 2019 by March 6. SBI emphasized the complex process involved in retrieving and matching data from different sources and requested more time to comply with the court's directive.
Adversitement