ECI Releases Electoral Bonds Data, BJP Received ₹11,562 Cr, Trinamool ₹3,214 Cr, Congress ₹2818 Cr
On March 12, 2024, the Election Commission of India (ECI) disclosed the electoral bonds data that the State Bank of India (SBI) had submitted, per the Supreme Court’s direction. The ECI got the data from SBI and published it on its website. The electoral regulator stated that it had firmly and repeatedly supported openness and transparency after uploading the data.
The SBI has only released two sets of information, as was expected: one file contains the name of the bond buyer, the date, and the denomination of the bonds, while the second file contains the names of the political parties, the date, and the denomination of the bonds that have been redeemed. There is no way to match who purchased using this info.
ECI has petitioned the Supreme Court to allow copies of the sealed cover documents (electoral bonds) that were filed with the highest court during the legal procedures to be posted on its website in the interim.
As previously reported, the BJP has amassed Rs 11562.5 crores through the encashing of the now-canceled program, which the government claims was introduced to increase transparency in election spending. Congress has earned Rs 2,818 crores, while Trinamool Congress has received Rs 3,214 crores.
Megha Engineering and Infrastructures Ltd. and Future Gaming and Hotel Services were the largest purchasers of electoral bonds among businesses.
The electoral bond program was invalidated by the Supreme Court on February 15, ruling that it violated the people’s rights to information and freedom of speech and expression and should be declared illegal.
Following that, on March 11, the Supreme Court ordered the bank to provide all material to the ECI by March 12, denying the SBI’s request for an extension to divulge the electoral bonds scheme’s specifics. The court issued a strong warning, stating that it would be willing to bring contempt charges against the government-owned bank should it not follow the order by the deadline. In addition, the court ordered the bank to provide an affidavit upon compliance.
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