[march]Electoral bonds

Question 1

what?

Answer 1

financial instrument for making annonymous donations to political parties.

-The holder of the instrument (which is the political party) is presumed to be its owner.

Question 2

Denomination?

Answer 2

issued in multiples of Rs. 1,000, Rs. 10,000, Rs. 1 lakh, Rs. 10 lakh and Rs. 1 crore without any maximum limit.

Question 3

Who can issue these bonds?

Answer 3

Only SBI can sell them.

by any person (who is a citizen of India or incorporated or established in India)

Question 4

Features

Answer 4

Donor’s name is not mentioned on the bond.

Question 5

Update

Answer 5

someone has challenged the constitutionality of the electoral bonds scheme, the petitioners had asked the court to declare all political parties as public offices to bring them under the ambit of the Right to Information Act and compel political parties to disclose their income and expenditure.

Question 6

Why have they been challenged?

Answer 6

• printing of these bonds & SBI commission for facilitating the sale and purchase of the bonds is paid from the taxpayers’ money[TAXPAYERS MONEY USED]
• Anonymity provided to donors
• Through an amendment to the Finance Act 2017, the Centre has exempted parties from disclosing donations received through electoral bonds.
• According to transparency activists, these infringe the citizen’s ‘Right to Know’ and make the political class even more unaccountable.

Question 7

What is EC’s stand?

Answer 7

EC had objected to amendments in the Representation of the People Act that exempt political parties from disclosing donations through this route.

-Jar donors reveal kele nahit tar he kalnar nahi ki whether the political party has taken any donation in violation of provision under Section 29(b) of the RP Act which prohibits the political parties from taking donations from government companies and foreign sources.