Electoral bond sales hit close to Rs 16,000cr, only Centre knows who gave what and to whom

Data from a Right to Information reply has disclosed that a staggering total of 27,133 electoral bonds, amounting to Rs 15,946.30 crore, have been sold in 29 tranches since the inception of the scheme in 2018.

The transparency activist, Retired Commodore Lokesh Batra, who filed the RTI application, received information from the State Bank of India that 26,939 electoral bonds worth Rs 15,922.4222 crore were encashed.

Electoral bonds, designed as a means for citizens or corporate entities to contribute to political parties, allow for anonymity throughout the process. Purchasers are not obligated to disclose their identity, and political parties are not required to reveal the source of the funds, only the total amount received.

However, the Centre maintains the ability to access donor information as it controls the State Bank of India.

Mumbai led in the sale of electoral bonds, with 3,844 bonds of a denomination of Rs 1 crore, followed by Hyderabad (3,333) and Kolkata (2,844). Notably, 194 bonds worth over Rs 23.88 crore remained uncashed and were subsequently transferred to the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund.

In response to this burgeoning trend, the Centre has announced the opening of the 30th tranche of electoral bond sales from January 2 to January 11. The Ministry of Finance emphasized that the electoral bonds will have a validity period of 15 days from the date of issue, and no payment will be made to political parties if the bonds are deposited after this period.

This latest development raises questions about the transparency and accountability of political funding, as concerns persist about the undisclosed nature of donors and the potential implications on the democratic process.