Supreme Court Upholds Electoral Integrity against Government's Tactics: Congress on Electoral Bond Issue

The Supreme Court has declined the State Bank of India's (SBI) request to postpone the deadline for revealing electoral bonds details, a decision that the Congress party has lauded as a victory for democracy. The court's constitutional bench ordered SBI to submit the required information to the Election Commission by the end of the workday on March 12.

Congress general secretary K C Venugopal praised the Supreme Court's action, criticizing SBI's attempt to delay as an evasion tactic by the government. He accused the current administration of attempting to hide its "corrupt dealings" and predicted that the disclosure would unveil the relationship between the ruling party and certain corporate entities.

During the proceedings, the bench, which included Justices Sanjiv Khanna, B R Gavai, J B Pardiwala, and Manoj Misra, addressed SBI's request for additional time to compile and match the data, which was stored separately. The court clarified that it had not instructed the bank to match donor and recipient details, only to provide the information to the Election Commission.

The bench also inquired about SBI's compliance with the Supreme Court's February 15 judgment, which declared the electoral bonds scheme unconstitutional and mandated the disclosure of donor details by March 13. The SBI had initially requested an extension until June 30 for this disclosure. The Supreme Court's ruling reinforces the importance of transparency in political funding.
(With inputs from PTI)