Today, the Supreme Court is set to deliver its verdict on a series of petitions contesting the legitimacy of the electoral bonds scheme. Chief Justice DY Chandrachud is leading a five-judge Constitution bench, which reserved its decision on November 2 of the previous year. Introduced by the government on January 2, 2018, the electoral bonds scheme aimed to supplant cash donations and improve transparency in political funding.
CJI has said, “We cannot ignore the Constitution simply because there’s a chance of misuse. We must apply the double proportionality standard. Clause 7(4) of the scheme favors informational privacy by granting anonymity to contributors, but there’s no clear link to the measures taken for balance. Electoral Bonds Contributions information is exempt from disclosure requirements. Absolute exemption doesn’t lead to transparency in political funding.”
further the CJI said, “there’s a possibility that contributions exceeding ₹20,000 could be support and not necessarily for quid pro quo… The Union of India hasn’t proven that Clause 7(4) is the least restrictive means to limit the right to information. The amendment to Section 29(1)(c) of the RPA and the amendment to the IT Act are declared unconstitutional. The Electoral Bonds scheme is invalidated as unconstitutional.”
