Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh): Congress’ Rajya Sabha MP Vivek Tankha hailed the Supreme Court's historic decision to strike down the electoral bond scheme.
Calling it a victory of democracy, Tankha said that the way corporations were donating money anonymously, it was clear that the scheme was carved to benefit the ruling party.
Tankha, in a video statement, said, “This was very necessary; it was a scheme to destroy democracy. It was in the interest of one party and was meant to eliminate the opposition. This is a victory for democracy. I thank the Supreme Court for its decision.”
The opposition Congress has been continuously raising questions about the constitutionality of the electoral bond scheme.
SC asks SBI to reveal information
The five-judge Constitution bench of the Supreme Court on Thursday struck down the electoral bond scheme, stating that it violates the citizen’s right to information. Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud said that the scheme was unconstitutional and arbitrary and may lead to a quid pro quo arrangement between political parties and donors.
The Chief Justice of India also directed the State Bank of India to immediately stop facilitating donations and to furnish details of donations made through this mechanism to the Election Commission of India (ECI). The Bench ordered ECI to publish this information on its website by March 13th.