The BJP sought to downplay the Supreme Court judgment on Electoral Bonds Scheme, saying every decision of the top court should be respected and accused the opposition parties of politicising the issue.
BJP spokesperson Nalin Kohli said the opposition is politicising the issue as it does not have any alternative to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership and the positive work done by his government.
The saffron party's reaction came after the Supreme Court in a landmark judgement annulled the electoral bonds scheme ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.
“We practice in the courts and on a daily basis, the cases are won and lost. Any order of the Supreme Court or its judgement has to be accepted and respected,” Kohli said, according to PTI.
“But those political parties who are trying to politicise it are doing it primarily on the ground that they have no answer or alternative to Modi ji’s leadership and the positive work done by his government where crores of people have benefitted,” he added.
Kohli said the government had brought the electoral bond scheme to address the issue of use of black money in the elections.
"The largest perspective is that this has been a journey for several decades and a concern has been how to prevent black money or slush money getting into the electoral process," the BJP leader said.
Speaking on the issue, BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad said, "The Electoral Bond Scheme was brought in for a very laudable objective- to bring in transparency in electoral funding, and to reduce the inflow of cash during elections. Even the donors wanted secrecy... This is not the only effort PM Narendra Modi had brought about to bring more transparency into the election process."
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/RahulGandhi/status/1758022994394329239?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WATCH</a> | Delhi: On the Supreme Court's verdict on the Electoral Bond scheme, BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad says, "... The Electoral Bond Scheme was brought in for a very laudable objective- to bring in transparency in electoral funding, and to reduce the inflow of cash during… <a >pic.twitter.com/KbboRftXWh</a></p>— ANI (@ANI) <a >February 15, 2024</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Following the judgment, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had hit out at the BJP saying the saffron party made electoral bonds a medium for taking bribe and commission. The apex court said that the Electoral Bonds scheme is violative of Article 19(1)(a).
In a post on X, the Wayanad MP said, "Another proof of Narendra Modi's corrupt policies is in front of you. BJP had made electoral bonds a medium for taking bribe and commission. Today this has been approved."
The top court said the government's electoral bond scheme violates the constitutional right to freedom of speech and expression as well as the right to information.
The apex court ordered the State Bank of India (SBI) to disclose to the Election Commission the names of the contributors to the six-year-old scheme.
The opposition parties welcomed the Supreme Court’s verdict and attacked the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
'Does Legal Regime Have No Sanctity?': BJP Sources Question Implications Of SC Directives On 'Legal Rights' Of Donors
Meanwhile, sources within the BJP have raised concerns regarding the directives from the Supreme Court, questioning the implications for the legal rights of donors who have operated under a system of legal assurance so far.
Under the existing framework, donors purchasing electoral bonds were assured that their identities would remain undisclosed, providing them with a sense of security against potential targeting or unwarranted scrutiny, the BJP sources said.
However, with the recent ruling from the Supreme Court mandating the retrospective disclosure of all donor names, they questioned if it would be fair to these individuals, who are also citizens of India, and have acted in accordance with a sovereign legal guarantee.
“Does a legal regime, created by Parliament, have no sanctity? This move is viewed as potentially infringing upon the rights of donors who had previously contributed under the assurance of anonymity, raising doubts about the integrity of the legal process involved,” the BJP sources said.
“Percentage of electoral bonds obtained by the BJP is same as the land mass and population of India governed by it,” the BJP sources further claimed.