Supreme Court refers electoral bond pleas to ​Constitution bench

The Supreme Court on Monday decided to refer a batch of pleas challenging the Centre’s electoral bond programme permitting anonymous funding to political parties to a Constitution bench of at least five members. This was announced by a bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud.

The CJI said that keeping in view the importance of the issue raised and with “regard to Article 145(4) of the Constitution of India, the matter be placed before a bench of at least five judges”. At the last hearing on October 10, SC had said that the pleas would be listed for final hearing on October 31.

The pleas were listed for final hearing after SC (at the last hearing) asked the counsels for petitioners and respondents whether the bench should defer the hearing until a Constitution bench of the court decided the law with regard to the passage of Acts as money bills.


Money bills can be passed without the assent of the Rajya Sabha and the poll bond scheme was also introduced by way of a money bill.

The CJI, speaking for the bench on October 10, had posed a few questions to get clarity with regard to the challenge raised by the petitioners. He had questioned the petitioners whether electoral bonds can be purchased through banks or by paying cash. The bench had also sought to know whether electoral bonds can be transferred to an individual. The CJI asked if an electoral bond is like a bearer bond.

Appearing on behalf of the petitioners, advocate Prashant Bhushan argued that electoral bonds are a device which promote corruption because they do not reveal the identity of the donor (to political parties).

A clutch of petitions, challenging nearly half a dozen provisions of the Finance Act, 2017, that brought in the electoral bonds for anonymous donations to political parties, is already pending adjudication in the court. In November last year, a fresh plea was filed in the court challenging a recent government notification allowing an additional 15 days for the sale of electoral bonds in a year when elections are held for legislative assemblies.

The 15-day additional sale window was previously provided only during years of parliamentary elections. The notification, which came just ahead of the elections in Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat, has extended that provision to the years of assembly elections as well.

The fresh plea challenges the notification earlier this month that amended the scheme to provide the additional window. As per the notification, the sale of electoral bonds is allowed from November 9 to November 15. In its response, the Centre has described the electoral bond scheme as most transparent.