Context :
Electoral bonds fully
transparent: Centre /
HT / 15 Oct 2022
Extract :
The Union government on Friday termed
electoral bonds (EBs) an “absolutely transparent” method of political funding, even as
the Supreme Court fixed a clutch of challenges to the Centre’s scheme for a
detailed hearing on December 6.
As soon as the case commenced, advocate Prashant Bhushan,
appearing for NGO Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), pressed for an
extensive hearing to scrutinise how EBs are
polluting the electoral system in the
country, besides an amendment in the law that even allows subsidiaries of
foreign companies to provide funds to political parties.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing another petitioner, called EBs “the most opaque system of funding”, adding a constitution bench is ideally suited to hear
this case in the wake of the impact of EBs on the constitutional mandate of
free and fair elections.
At this point, solicitor general (SG) Tushar Mehta,
appearing for the Centre, intervened to rebut Sibal’s arguments. “Let me tell
my lords that the methodology of receiving money is so transparent that it is impossible to get any money in black or unaccounted
money. Everything is transparent, nothing is in black now.”
The bench asked the SG if the system provides for where
the money is coming from.
“Absolutely my lords... The system is absolutely and
completely transparent,” replied Mehta, adding that there is a complete chain
of how money is transferred from one account to another using the draft
facility.
Mehta reiterated that the EB is a transparent system but
the government is willing to consider if
there are any suggestions from the top court regarding any “loophole”.
The ADR claimed that EBs are an anonymous route of funding
that amounted to legitimising bribery, as corporate donors could fund the party
in power in a state or the Centre as a matter of quid pro quo.
These donations enjoy 100% tax exemption and even foreign
companies can donate through Indian subsidiaries, the petitioners added.
“The electoral bonds scheme has opened the floodgates to unlimited corporate donations to political parties and anonymous
financing by Indian as well as foreign companies, which can have serious
repercussions on Indian democracy,” the ADR claimed.
It pointed out that the Finance Act of 2017 exempts
contributions by way of electoral bonds to be disclosed even to the Election Commission under Section 29C of the
Representation of Peoples Act.
MY
TAKE :
Dear Supreme Court,
In this connection, I have sent to you – and to all Political
Parties – my following suggestion :
Ø Transparency
in Political Funding ? ………………………..[ 06 July 2017 ]
Thereafter I followed up with my following e-mails :
Make Me A Party……………………………..
[ 03 Oct 2017 ]
Ø Electoral Bonds
for Transparency ?.. [ 03 Jan 2018 ]
Ø Don’t Disclose
Donations …………………[ 04 Jan 2018 ]
Ø Of Electoral
Bondage ?................... [ 30 Mar 2019 ]
Ø Please Hear and
Read too……………….. [ 19 Mar 2021 ]
Ø Thank You for “
Reading “/“ Asking “ [ 24 Mar 2021 ]
Ø But what is info
in “sealed cover“?.....[ 05 July 2021 ]
I urge you to forward my suggestion of 06 July 2017 , to the Petitioners and the
Central Government, and tell
hearing ), their OBJECTIONS if any, to my suggestion
You may also ask them to submit in writing, MODIFICATIONS if any, to my
suggestion
This REFORM for funding of Political Parties has assumed TOP PRIORITY
considering that :
Ø
General Elections are due in another 14 months
( Feb 2024 ? )
Ø
In addition, during 2024 itself,
following 7 States have their MLA
elections :
Ø
Following 9 States have their
Legislative Elections due in 2023 :
1. Meghalaya
2. Nagaland
3. Tripura
4. Karnataka
5. Chhattisgarh
7. Mizoram
8. Rajasthan
9. Rajasthan
With regards,
Hemen Parekh
hcp@RecruitGuru.com /
23 Nov 2022
No comments:
Post a Comment