Unveiling the Top 10 Highlights from the Major News Event

The matter is currently under consideration by a Constitution bench led by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, accompanied by Justices Sanjiv Khanna, BR Gavai, JB Pardiwala, and Manoj Misra.

Before the electoral bond scheme was terminated last month, the bench asked the National Bank to submit comprehensive information regarding each electoral bond redeemed by political parties.

The Supreme Court is also currently hearing a separate plea filed by non-profit organizations, the Association for Democratic Reforms and Common Cause. This plea seeks contempt proceedings against the State Bank of India (SBI), alleging deliberate disobedience of a court order to submit the required details by March 6th.

Last month, on February 15th, the bench invalidated the electoral bonds scheme introduced by the government, which permitted anonymous political contributions. The judges deemed it "unconstitutional."

The court had stated that electoral bonds violate people's right to information and Article 14 of the Constitution, which ensures equality. Additionally, the court highlighted that the bonds encroach upon the principle of free and fair elections as outlined in the constitution.

The court had directed the Election Commission to provide details regarding donors, their donated amounts, and the recipients of electoral bonds. This information, as the court specified, must be made available on the Commission's website by March 13th.

Additionally, the court had instructed the State Bank of India (SBI) to furnish details of electoral bonds purchased since April 12, 2019, to the Election Commission by March 6th.

On March 4, the State Bank of India (SBI) requested the Supreme Court to extend the deadline until June 30, citing the time-consuming nature of retrieving the required information. The complexity arises from the necessity to maintain anonymity, which has added layers of complication to the process.

The Congress has accused the BJP of utilizing the State Bank of India (SBI) as a shield, insinuating that the extension request is a tactic to withhold data until after the Lok Sabha election. They claim that the request for an extension is a pretext to keep the information concealed.

Highlighting that the State Bank of India (SBI) operates on a fully computerized system, the Congress emphasized that obtaining the required details should be easily accomplished with a few clicks. They pointed out that SBI manages 48 crore bank accounts, 66,000 ATMs, and nearly 23,000 branches. The Congress questioned why, with such extensive infrastructure, the bank would need five months to provide data on just 22,217 electoral bonds.