Sale of Electoral Bonds by SBI | What are Electoral Bonds and why were they introduced?

Sale of Electoral Bond at State Bank of India Authorized Branches (SBI): State Bank of India (SBI) has been authorised to issue and encash Electoral Bonds through its 29 Authorized Branches from 01.07.2022 to 10.07.2022.

What is the Electoral Bond Scheme 2018 and why were they introduced?

The Indian government has announced the Electoral Bond Scheme via Gazette Notification No. 20 on January 2, 2018. in order to clean up India’s political fundraising structure.

An Electoral Bond is a bearer instrument similar to a Promissory Note and an interest-free banking instrument. The bond can be purchased by an Indian citizen or an organisation formed in India.

Electoral bonds will be issued/purchased in multiples of ‘1,000, ‘10,000, ‘1,00,000, ‘10,00,000, and ‘1,00,00,000 from the designated State Bank of India branches (SBI).

In accordance with the provisions of the Scheme, a person who is a citizen of India or a company incorporated in India may acquire electoral bonds. Persons can buy Electoral Bonds individually or jointly with other individuals.

Only Political Parties registered under Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 (43 of 1951) and securing at least 1% of the votes cast in the last General Election to the House of the People or the Legislative Assembly of the State are eligible to receive these Bonds.

An eligible political party may only encash the electoral bonds through a bank account with the authorised bank.

Payment will not be paid to any payee political party if an electoral bond is deposited after its validity term has expired. These bonds are valid for 15 calendar days from the date of issue. The Bond deposited in the account of an eligible Political Party will be credited on the same day.

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Source: PIB