However, several questions have arisen over the accuracy of the government’s submissions in these sealed cover notes, from an incorrect statement that the CAG report on the deal had been made public to conflation of the different Ambani groups. Revelations about the deal by N Ram in The Hindu also indicate the government withheld details of the process from the court.

Worst of all, we will have no idea what excuses are adopted by the parties to avoid submitting information (since it will all be in a sealed cover) and we will not know what the Election Commission says in response.

The source of political funding can seriously influence the policies adopted by the government of this country, could help understand the motivations behind legislation and government schemes. If voters are to make an informed choice at the elections, they need to know these things, but thanks to electoral bonds, they don’t.

The level-playing field is also at serious risk. Comparing data from the Election Commission’s website and information revealed in an RTI by SBI, we know that the BJP received 95 percent of the donations made through electoral bonds in March 2018. It is widely believed that this number is consistent with sales in subsequent quarters as well (for which information is not publicly available). With the bonds set to remain on sale for a few more days in April and in May as well, this could mean the BJP have a huge advantage over other parties when it comes to election spending – and advantage that will not be affected by the court’s order and will not even face interrogation till at least 30 May, after the elections are over.

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Why the SC’s Electoral Bonds Order Leaves a Lot to be Desired

Easy excuses for parties, opacity of sealed cover, no clarity for 2019 elections could make the order ineffective.

Vakasha Sachdev

Updated: 12 Apr 2019, 5:45 PM IST

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On Friday, the Supreme Court delivered an interim order refusing to stay the electoral bonds scheme – while at the same time directing all political parties to provide details of donations received through electoral bonds to the Election Commission by 30 May.

This order does not affect the broader challenge to the constitutionality of the scheme, which Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi noted is a “weighty” issue and requires further time and arguments.

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Topics: BJP Supreme Court 2019 Lok Sabha Elections

Published: 12 Apr 2019, 2:53 PM IST