Ruckus Over Electoral Bonds In Parliament

Congress led protests in both houses of parliament over electoral bonds and privatisation of public sector units (PSUs), leading to the walkout in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha. The Congress called electoral bonds a scam and accused the government of “making corruption official”.

Crux of the Matter

1. Congress leader Manish Tewari raised the issue of electoral bonds after which for about 15-minutes MPs stormed the well while chanting slogans along with a sharp exchange of words between Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, Congress MP and Speaker Om Birla.

2. Rajya Sabha Congress leaders have filed a notice to discuss electoral bonds with reference to the Reserve Bank of India’s reservation.

3. In an RTI query by Commodore (Rtd) Lokesh Batra copies of official letters and file notings were provided by the government that unveiled suspicion about introducing electoral bonds.

4. The issue became fierce when Huffpost in its article on November 18 reported that the Reserve Bank of India had objected to the scheme and the amendment to the RBI Act could encourage money laundering. But this was neglected by the government and the Finance Bill 2017 was passed.

5. Since its inception in the 2017 Union Budget, electoral bonds have been subjected to questions relating to lack of transparency.

Curiopedia

Electoral Bonds Scheme – As per the provisions of the scheme, they can be purchased by an Indian citizen or a company incorporated or established in India. Only political parties registered under Section 29A of the Representation of the Peoples Act, 1951 and has secured no less than one per cent votes in the last Lok Sabha elections are eligible to receive electoral bonds. The electoral accounts are issued by the State Bank of India (SBI). The electoral bonds can be purchased in the months of January, April, July and October. A donor can purchase these bonds from specified branches of State Bank of India in multiples of Rs 1,000, Rs 1 lakh, Rs 10 lakh or Rs 1 crore and donate it to any registered political party and the party can encash it in its account like a bearer cheque. Supreme Court has asked political parties to reveal details of the donations received to the Election Commission. More Info

Curated Coverage

1. Huff Post – Modi PMO Ordered Illegal Electoral Bond Sale Before Vital State Polls

2. Business Today – In defence of electoral bonds – the quantum leap in probity

3. NDTV – “Big Scam”: Congress Walkout In Parliament Over Electoral Bonds

#Congress #ElectoralBonds #Parliament #WinterSession