22,217 Electoral Bonds Bought Between 2019-24, 22,030 Of Them Redeemed By Political Parties: SBI to SC

New Delhi: In compliance with a Supreme Court directive, the State Bank of India (SBI) has filed an affidavit stating that it has submitted data on electoral bonds to the Election Commission of India (EC). The information, stored on a pen drive, comprises two password-protected PDF files.

According to the affidavit, between April 2019 and February 15, 2024, a total of 22,217 electoral bonds were purchased, out of which 22,030 were redeemed by political parties. The remaining 187 bonds were redeemed, and the funds were deposited into the Prime Minister’s national relief fund as per regulations.

The electoral bonds scheme, now deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, allowed donors to purchase bonds for political donations. Parties were required to redeem the bonds within 15 days; otherwise, the amount would be allocated to the Prime Minister’s relief fund.

Following the court’s ruling, SBI was instructed to halt bond issuance and disclose donation details to the EC for public transparency. Despite SBI’s request for an extension until June 30, the court denied it and mandated the submission by Tuesday. Consequently, the EC has been directed to publish the data on its website by 5 pm on Friday.

Senior Advocate Harish Salve, representing SBI, assured the court of possessing comprehensive information on bond purchasers, fund origins, and amounts tendered to political parties. However, the court clarified that it did not instruct SBI to match donors with party contributions, dismissing the need for additional time for such exercises.