Electoral bonds are a financial means of making donations to political parties. But now electoral bonds have been banned. Now we will know what is an electoral bond?, how and who can buy it. And why is it banned?
What is an Electoral Bond?
The Government of India had announced the Electoral Bond Scheme in 2017. This scheme was implemented by the government on January 29, 2018. Electoral bonds are a financial means of making donations to political parties. It is like an affidavit, which is purchased from SBI, through this letter, people donating can donate to their favorite party anonymously.
The tenure of electoral bonds is only 15 days. Donations can be made through Electoral Bond only to those political parties which have secured at least 1% of the votes in the last general election for the Lok Sabha or Assembly.
Electoral Bonds List
You have been told how much donation each party has received through a table below.
| Party | Donation (Rs crore) |
|---|---|
| BJP | 6,986.5 (highest 2,555 in 2019-20) |
| Congress | 1,334.35 |
| TMC | 1,397 |
| DMK | 656.5 |
| BJD | 944.5 |
| YSR Congress | 442.8 |
| TDP | 181.35 |
| SP | 14.05 |
| Akali Dal | 7.26 |
| AIADMK | 6.05 |
| National Conference | 0.50 |
| BRS | 1,322 |
Ban Imposed on Electoral Bonds
The Supreme Court said the electoral bond scheme is a violation of Article 19 (1) (A). For this reason the Supreme Court has banned electoral bonds. The public has every right to know how much money has been received by which government.
The court issued instructions saying, “State Bank of India (SBI) should give all the details of the contributions made so far through electoral bonds to the Election Commission by March 31, 2024.” The court also directed the Election Commission to share the information on its official website by April 13, 2024.
When and Who can Buy Electoral Bonds?
Electoral bonds are issued in the months of January, April, July and October. Electoral Bond can be purchased by any citizen who has a bank account whose KYC details are available. Electoral Bond does not contain the name of the payer.
Under the scheme, Electoral Bonds of any denomination of Rs 1,000, Rs 10,000, Rs 1 lakh, Rs 10 lakh and Rs 1 crore can be purchased from SBI. But now SBI has suffered a big blow.
How do Electoral Bonds Work?
It is very easy to use electoral bonds. These bonds are offered in multiples of Rs 1,000 such as ₹ 1,000, ₹ 10,000, ₹ 100,000 and can be in the range of ₹ 1 crore.
Electoral bonds are taken from SBI Bank. Any donor having a KYC-compliant account can purchase such bonds, and can later donate them to any political party. After this the receiver can convert it into cash. The party’s verified account is used to encash it. Electoral bonds also remain valid only for 15 days.
Who gets Electoral Bond?
All the political parties in the country get this bond, but the condition for this is that that party should have got at least 1% or more votes in the last general election. Such a registered party will be entitled to receive donations through electoral bonds. According to the government, ‘Black money will be controlled through electoral bonds and accounts of the amount given as donations in elections can be maintained. This will improve election funding.
When and why was it started
In 2017, the central government introduced the electoral bonds scheme in the Parliament through the Finance Bill. After being passed by the Parliament, the notification of the Electoral Bond Scheme was issued on January 29, 2018. Political parties receive donations through this.
