EC asks parties to share details of donations received through electoral bonds by Nov 15

The Election Commission of India (ECI) has asked political parties to provide information on all donations received through electoral bonds since the initiation of the scheme by November 15. The move by the EC comes after the Supreme Court on November 2 directed the poll panel to produce before it in sealed cover the up to date data of funds received by political parties through electoral bonds till September 30, 2023.

All such parties, which have ever received any donation by way of Electoral Bond(s), since the inception of the Electoral Bond Scheme, are to furnish the details of all such donation(s) received by them, by way of Electoral Bond(s) till 30.09.2023, along-with detailed particulars of the donors against each bond; the amount of each such bond and the full particulars of the credit received against each bond, namely, the particulars of the bank account to which the account has been credited and the date of each such credit, the EC had written on November 3.

ECI has specified that the sealed covers should reach the Commission latest by 5:00 PM, 15.11.2023. The envelope should be clearly marked as Confidential-Electoral Bond. The name of the political party, submitting the information, must also be clearly written on the envelope. While passing its order on November 2, the apex court had said, This exercise shall be carried out on or before November 19, 2023. Data in a sealed packet shall be handed over to the Registrar (Judicial) of this court.

A five-judge constitution bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud referred to the April 12, 2019 interim direction passed by the apex court directing political parties to furnish the details of funds received by them through electoral bonds to the poll panel in a sealed cover. The electoral bonds scheme, which was notified by the government on January 2, 2018, was pitched as an alternative to cash donations made to political parties as part of efforts to bring in transparency in political funding.