Supreme Court Asks SBI To Disclose Electoral Bonds's Unique Numbers That Link Donors To Recipients, Issues Notice To The Bank

The Supreme Court has criticized the State Bank of India (SBI) on Friday (15 March) for failing to disclose the unique numbers of electoral bonds, as required by the court's previous ruling.

Emphasising that these numbers are crucial for linking donors to recipients, the court issued a notice to the bank to explain its omission and scheduled the next hearing for Monday (18 March).

The top court categorically stated that electoral bond numbers, which link donors to recipients, "has to be disclosed" by the lender.

Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud reiterated the court's earlier directive for SBI to provide all details to the Election Commission (EC), stressing that the bond numbers must be disclosed.

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"We had said all details had to be handed over to Election Commission (EC). They [SBI] have not disclosed the bond numbers. It has to be disclosed by the State Bank of India," said Chief Justice.

Furthermore, Senior advocate Kapil Sibal pointed out the court's comprehensive order, emphasizing that SBI was obligated to furnish all relevant details regarding electoral bonds.

It's important to note that the court's observation was made during a hearing on the EC's plea to modify the 11 March order, which had denied SBI's request for an extension until 30 June to submit electoral bond data.

Meanwhile, the EC sought the return of previously submitted electoral bond data in sealed envelopes, citing an inability to publish the information until the sealed envelopes are returned.

Subsequently, the court directed the judicial registrar to scan and digitize the documents submitted by the EC before returning them.

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