The safeguards of Indian Democracy are crumbling under Electoral Bonds. Discuss.
Electoral Bonds are bearer banking instruments that can be used to donate to political parties. One can read this Factly article to understand in detail about the electoral bond system. The major issues with electoral bonds are as below:-
- Contradicting its Basic Idea:
- The central criticism of the electoral bonds scheme is that it does the exact opposite of whatit was meant to do: bring transparency to election funding.
- For example, critics argue that the anonymity of electoral bonds is only for the broader public and opposition parties.
- Possibility of Extortion:
- The fact that such bonds are sold via a government-owned bank (SBI) leaves the door open for the government to know exactly who is funding its opponents.
- This, in turn, allows the possibility for the government of the day to either extort money, especially from the big companies,or victimise them for not funding the ruling party — either way providing an unfair advantage to the party in power.
- A Blow to Democracy:
- Through an amendment to the Finance Act 2017, the Union government has exempted political parties from disclosing donations received through electoral bonds.
- This means the voters will not know which individual, company, or organization has funded which party, and to what extent.
- However, in a representative democracy, citizens cast their votes for the people who will represent them in Parliament.
- Compromising Right to Know:
- The Supreme Court of Indiahas long held that the “right to know”, especially in the context of elections, is an integral part of the right to freedom of expression (Article 19) under the Indian Constitution.
- Against Free & Fair Elections:
- The bonds provide no details to the citizens but said anonymity does not apply to the government, which can always access the donor details by demanding the data from the State Bank of India (SBI).
- This implies that the government in power can leverage this information and disrupt free and fair elections.
- Crony Capitalism:
- The electoral bonds scheme removes all pre-existing limits on political donationsand effectively allows well-resourced corporations to fund elections, subsequently paving the way for crony capitalism.
- Crony Capitalism is an economic system characterized by close, mutually advantageous relationships between business leaders and government
Looking ahead
- There is a need for effective regulation of political financingalong with bold reforms to break the vicious cycle of corruption and erosion of quality of democratic polity.
- It is crucial to plug the loopholes in the current lawsto make the entire governance machinery more accountable and transparent.
- Voters can also help bring in substantial changes by demanding awareness campaigns. If voters reject candidates and parties that overspend or bribe them, democracy would move a step higher.
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