The Supreme Court of India on Monday dismissed the plea filed by the State Bank of India (SBI) seeking time till June 30 to disclose the data on the electoral bonds scheme, which is sought by the top court.This was after the SBI said it can compile separate lists of the purchasers and redeemers within three weeks. However, the top court gave the bank just one day, pointing out that this information is readily available with the bank.The apex court also said that it was putting the SBI ‘on notice’ and may initiate contempt proceedings against it if it fails to submit the data by close of business on Tuesday. The bench said the SBI shall file an affidavit of its chairman and managing director on compliance with the directions issued by the top court.”SBI is directed to disclose the details by the close of business hours of March 12. As regards the Election Commission of India (ECI), we direct that it shall compile the information and publish the details no later than by 5 PM, March 15…” the court ordered.During the hearing, the bench, also comprising Justices Sanjiv Khanna, B R Gavai, J B Pardiwala, and Manoj Misra, took note of the submissions of senior advocate Harish Salve, appearing for the SBI, that more time was needed for collating the details and matching them as the information was kept in two different silos with its branches. At the outset of the hearing today, the SBI claimed that over 22,000 bonds were issued, and hence, compilation and matching would be time consuming and a lengthy process.Harish Salve further said if the matching exercise is to be done away with, the SBI can complete the exercise within three weeks.The bench said it had not directed the SBI to match the details of donors and donee with other information. The SBI has to just open the sealed cover, collate the details and give the information to the Election Commission, the apex court said.The Supreme Court also observed that there is a number assigned to electoral bonds. “It must be there in the record to find out.” However, Salve said that the number is kept a secret, and to generate the number, there was a need to match the details.The apex court also observed that the electoral bonds scheme stipulated that information furnished by the buyer of the bond shall be treated as confidential, and shall be disclosed only by orders of a court or law enforcement agencies. SBI is mandated to disclose info when demanded by a court, the bench asserted.In a landmark verdict delivered on February 15, a five-judge Constitution bench had scrapped the Centre’s electoral bonds scheme that allowed anonymous political funding, calling it “unconstitutional” and ordered disclosure by the ECI of donors, the amount donated by them and the recipients by March 13. Ordering the closure of the scheme, the top court directed the SBI, the authorised financial institution under the scheme, to submit by March 6 the details of the electoral bonds purchased since April 12, 2019, till date to the Election Commission.
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