SBI asks SC for more time to disclose electoral bond details in ‘Complex Exercise’

New Delhi, March 4 (IANS) The State Bank of India (SBI) has filed an application in the Supreme Court requesting an extension until June 30 to release the details of Electoral Bonds purchased so far. The SBI stated the complexity of decoding the bonds and matching donors to donations as the reason for the request.

According to the application, the process of decoding the Electoral Bonds and matching donors’ identities to donations involves stringent measures to ensure anonymity. The data related to bond issuance and redemption was stored separately in different silos to protect donor anonymity.

The SBI revealed that donor details were kept in sealed covers at designated branches and all covers were deposited at the Mumbai main branch. Each political party was required to maintain a designated account for receiving and redeeming electoral bonds, with original bonds and pay-in slips stored in sealed covers and sent to the Mumbai main branch.

Furthermore, the SBI mentioned that retrieving information from each silo and matching them would be a time-consuming task, requiring significant effort. The recent decision by a 5-judge Constitution Bench declared the Electoral Bonds Scheme, 2018 unconstitutional and ordered the SBI to cease their issuance immediately.

The Bench directed the SBI to submit details of Electoral Bonds purchased since April 2019 to the Election Commission by March 6 for publication on the official website. The details must include the date of purchase, name of the purchaser, and denomination of the bond. The SBI was given a deadline of three weeks from the judgment date to complete this task.