The State Bank of India (SBI) has moved the Supreme Court seeking an extension of deadline till June 30 for giving information about electoral bonds to the Election Commission.
AMN
The State Bank of India (SBI) on Monday urged the Supreme Court to extend the deadline till June 30 to provide information regarding electoral bonds to the Election Commission of India (ECI).
The initial deadline for SBI to furnish all relevant information to the Election Commission was set for March 6, 2024, after the top court, in a landmark judgment, struck down the electoral bonds scheme.
However, citing the complexity of the task at hand, the central bank has sought additional time to comply with the court’s directives.
The Supreme Court had earlier directed the SBI to disclose the donor information, spanning from the interim order on April 12, 2019, to the judgment date on February 15, 2024. Within this period, a significant number of electoral bonds — specifically, 22,217 — were utilised for making contributions to various political parties.
In the extension application, the SBI stated that between the period April 12, 2019 to February 15, 2024, twenty-two thousand two hundred and seventeen (22,217) electoral bonds were issued for making donations to various parties. The redeemed bonds were deposited to the Mumbai Main Branch by the Authorised Branches at the end of each phase in sealed envelopes. The SBI stated that since two different information silos existed, it has to decode, compile and compare forty-four thousand four hundred