Never accepted a financial offer from electoral bonds: CPI (M)

On Friday, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) said that it had never created a dedicated SBI account, which was necessary to take the bonds, and that it had never accepted any funds via electoral bonds.

“Reports have appeared in some sections of the media that the CPI(M) has received various amounts as contributions through electoral bonds,” the party stated in a statement.

“The party would want to make it clear that these claims are untrue and unfounded. In actuality, the CPI(M) has steadfastly refused to take electoral bonds. That’s why, in order to comply with the legislation and take electoral bonds, it did not even create an authorized State Bank of India account,” the statement said.

“The CPI(M) had appealed to the Supreme Court against the electoral bonds scheme because of this basic opposition,” the statement said.

The Supreme Court struck down the Center’s anonymous political finance program known as electoral bonds on Thursday, declaring it “unconstitutional” and requiring the disclosure of the bond’s sources, amount, and beneficiaries by March 13 in a historic decision that came only months before the Lok Sabha elections.

Political parties may get electoral bonds, which can be purchased from a bank and given to them, if they are introduced in January 2018. The political party can then exchange the bonds for cash.

Supreme Court’s ruling on Election Bonds has balanced the playing field for all parties, according to CPM General Secretary Sitaram Yechury.