A Supreme Court Bench headed by the Chief Justice of India on Tuesday agreed to list for hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by the Association for Democratic Reforms, challenging the electoral bond scheme for funding the political parties; however, no date has been fixed for the hearing.
Activist lawyer Prashant Bhushan pressed for an urgent hearing before the Bench which also included Justices Krishna Murari and Hima Kohli. He pointed out that the urgent listing was sought earlier, too. To this, the CJI said: "Were it not for Covid, I would have heard all of this already."
Bhushan had called for an urgent listing on October 4 last year, seeking a direction to the Centre not to open any further window for the sale of electoral bonds during the pendency of the case due to alleged lack of transparency in the parties' accounts.
The ADR, which keeps an eye on criminal candidates of various parties, had filed the PIL in 2017 alleging rampant corruption and subversion of democracy through illicit and foreign funding of political parties. It had also moved an interim application in March last year before the Assembly elections in West Bengal and Assam to stop the sale of electoral bonds, claiming that the political parties are funded illegally through shell companies.
The ADR had further alleged that audit has shown the ruling party was the recipient of more than 60% of the total electoral bonds in 2017-18 and 2018-19.
On January 20 last year, the apex court had refused to stay the 2018 electoral bonds notified by the government on January 2 that year. The NGO noted that even the Election Commission and the Reserve Bank of India had in 2017 objected to the electoral bonds, advising against their issue as a mode of donation to the political parties.
The ADR contended that almost 99% of the bonds are purchased in the denominations of Rs 1 crore and Rs 10 lakh, which only shows that it is not individuals but large corporations that are buying them to subsequently receive kickbacks from the government.
It said the laws allow unlimited political conations, even from foreign countries, and thereby legitimise electoral corruption on a large scale.
