Supreme Court seeks centre, ECI reply on PIL against poll money power

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday sought responses from the Centre and the Election Commission of India (ECI) on a public interest litigation alleging unregulated use of money power by political parties during elections.

A three-member bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant observed that the issue raises complex constitutional questions.

Advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing on behalf of the petitioner, submitted that the matter strikes at the heart of the democratic process. During the hearing, Justice Joymalya Bagchi referred to spending limits in other jurisdictions and raised questions about the effectiveness of such regulatory measures. "There are limits on spending in the US also, but what about the friends of the candidates," Justice Bagchi observed.


He further flagged possible constitutional concerns if expenditure restrictions were imposed.

In response, Bhushan relied on the Apex Court's ruling in the electoral bonds case to submit that the Court had already recognised the distortive impact of unchecked political funding.

The Bench issued notice on the PIL seeking response(s) from ECI and Centre.