SBI can’t be selective, has to disclose electoral bond numbers: SC

PTI, Mar 18, 2024, 11:42 AM IST

Representative image (Source: PTI)

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday said the State Bank of India (SBI) can’t be selective and has to disclose all “conceivable” electoral bond details in its possession, including unique bond numbers that would disclose the link between the buyer and the recipient political party.

A five-judge bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud said the apex court had, in its verdict in the electoral bonds case, asked the bank to disclose all the details of the bonds and it should not wait for further orders on this aspect.

“We had asked all details to be disclosed by the SBI which includes electoral bond numbers as well. Let SBI not be selective in disclosure,” the bench, also comprising Justices Sanjiv Khanna, B R Gavai, J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, orally said during the hearing.

Last week, the top court had issued a notice to the country’s largest bank to explain the reasons for non-disclosure of unique alpha numeric numbers in compliance of its directions, saying the SBI was “duty bound” to reveal them.

On April 12, 2019, the apex court had issued an interim order directing that the information about the donations received and donations which will be received must be submitted by political parties to the EC in a sealed cover.

In its landmark verdict on February 15, the top court had scrapped the Centre’s electoral bonds scheme that allowed anonymous political funding, calling it “unconstitutional” and ordered disclosure by the EC of donors, the amount donated by them and the recipients by March 13.