The State Bank of India (SBI) has been authorised to issue and encash electoral bonds through its 29 branches from January 2 to January 11, the Ministry of Finance said on Monday.
The electoral bond, which was introduced in 2017 to bring transparency to political funding, is an instrument that is used to donate funds to political parties. The electoral bonds can be purchased by a person, who is a citizen of India or incorporated or established in India.
A person being an individual can buy the electoral bonds, either singly or jointly with other individuals. These bonds shall be valid for fifteen calendar days from the date of issue and no payment shall be made to any political party if the bond is deposited after the expiry of the validity period.
The electoral bond deposited by an eligible political party in its account shall be credited on the same day, the ministry said.
While the central government claims that the electoral bonds have brought transparency, petitions have been filed in the Supreme Court, arguing that it favours the ruling government as it does not reveal the identity of donors.
In October last year, the apex court said that the pleas challenging the validity of the electoral bond scheme for political funding will now be adjudicated upon by a five-judge constitution bench for an authoritative pronouncement.
The electoral bond scheme was pitched as an alternative to cash donations made to political parties as part of efforts to bring transparency in political funding.
On November 2 last year, the top court directed the Election Commission to produce before it in a sealed cover the "up to date" data of funds received by political parties through electoral bonds till September 30, 2023.