Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his concerns regarding the Supreme Court's February decision to abolish electoral bonds. He labeled the move as one that "everyone will regret when there is honest reflection" and said that it has effectively propelled the nation towards the prevalence of black money.
The Prime Minister clarified that the electoral bonds scheme introduced by his government aimed to combat the use of 'black money' in election campaigns, referring to unaccounted cash or funds from criminal activities, and that he had "never claimed this was an absolute way" to achieve that goal.
Modi further criticized the opposition for disseminating "lies" about the bonds and asserted that his government had implemented the scheme to reduce the influence of 'black money' in elections. He refuted accusations that his Bharatiya Janata Party was the primary beneficiary, dismissing claims of receiving thousands of crores through the scheme.
There has been a discussion in our country for a long time... that black money allows for dangerous games to be played during elections. That money is spent in elections... no one denies. My party also spends... all parties and all candidates spend, and this money is taken from the people. I wanted to try something... how can our elections be free from this black money? How can there be transparency for people giving donations? This was a pure thought in my mind," the PM said.
We were looking for a way. We found a small way... never claimed this was absolute," he said, building on comments from earlier this month, when he told a Tamil news channel "no system is perfect... shortcomings can be improved"
Modi's remarks on electoral bonds were part of a comprehensive interview aired this evening, just four days before the commencement of the Lok Sabha election. During the interview, he addressed various topics, including detailed remarks on the opposition INDIA bloc, the contentious 'One Nation, One Election' scheme, and allegations regarding his government's purported use of central investigative agencies, such as the Enforcement Directorate, to target rivals before elections.