The State Bank of India (SBI) has declined to disclose information regarding the electoral bonds furnished to the Election Commission (EC) under the Right to Information (RTI) Act. The bank cited exemption clauses related to records held in a fiduciary capacity and withholding personal information, despite the fact that the records are already in the public domain on the poll panel's website.
Following the Supreme Court's directive on February 15, which deemed the electoral bonds scheme "unconstitutional and manifestly arbitrary," the SBI was instructed to provide complete details of the bonds purchased since April 12, 2019, to the EC. The EC was then supposed to publish this information on its website by March 13.
Despite this, the SBI denied disclosing the information to RTI activist Commodore (retired) Lokesh Batra, citing exemption clauses under the RTI Act. The bank stated that the details requested, including those of purchasers and political parties, are held in a fiduciary capacity and hence are exempted from disclosure under sections 8(1)(e) and (j) of the RTI Act.
Batra also sought information on the fees paid by the SBI to senior advocate Harish Salve to defend its case against the disclosure of the electoral bonds' records. The bank declined to provide this information as well, citing similar reasons related to fiduciary capacity and personal nature of the information.
The Supreme Court criticized the SBI for not furnishing complete information, particularly regarding unique numbers assigned to each electoral bond. The court emphasized that the bank was "duty-bound" to reveal all details, including the names of purchasers, amounts, and dates of purchase.
Despite the EC publishing the data provided by the SBI on its website, the Supreme Court's insistence on complete disclosure underscores the importance of transparency in electoral funding.
