The Supreme Court, under the leadership of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud, has chosen to forward a cluster of petitions contesting the electoral bond scheme’s legality for political party funding to a five-judge Constitution bench. An urgent plea, seeking a definitive judgment, has been presented to the bench, and the case is earmarked for a hearing on October 30. Electoral bonds were introduced as a substitute for cash contributions, with the intent of elevating transparency and accountability in political funding.
In an earlier development, lawyer Prashant Bhushan had stressed the necessity of adjudicating the matter before its prospective implementation in the 2024 general elections. In response to these submissions, the court had decided to hold a final hearing.
This issue has garnered considerable public interest and concern, as evidenced by the existence of four pending Public Interest Litigations (PILs) related to the electoral bond scheme. One of the PIL petitioners, back in March, had disclosed that a substantial sum totaling Rs 12,000 crore had been channeled to political parties via electoral bonds. Furthermore, it was observed that a substantial portion of this sum had been funneled to a prominent political party, raising questions about equity and transparency.