NEW DELHI, Nov 4: The government authorised the issuing of the 29th tranche of electoral bonds on Saturday, ahead of assembly elections in five states. The bonds will go on sale on November 6. The choice was made in the midst of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, and Mizoram assembly election campaigns. These states have elections from November 7 to November 30. Voter tallying is scheduled for December 3. In an attempt to increase openness in political fundraising, electoral bonds have been promoted as an alternative to financial contributions to political parties.The finance ministry released a statement saying, “Government of India has authorised State Bank of India (SBI), in the XXIX Phase of sale, to issue and encash Electoral Bonds through its 29 Authorised Branches wef November 6-20, 2023.” In March 2018, the first set of electoral bonds were sold. An eligible political party may only cash electoral bonds via an account with an allowed bank. The only bank that is permitted to issue electoral bonds is SBI.Bengaluru, Lucknow, Shimla, Dehradun, Kolkata, Guwahati, Chennai, Patna, New Delhi, Chandigarh, Srinagar, Gandhinagar, Bhopal, Raipur, and Mumbai are among the authorised SBI branches. The finance ministry further stated that electoral bonds have a 15-day validity period from the date of issuance and that if they are deposited after that time, no payment will be made to the political party that is the payee. It further said, “On the same day, the electoral bond deposited by an eligible political party in its account shall be credited.”Indian people and companies incorporated or founded in the nation may purchase electoral bonds. Electoral bonds can be used to fund registered political parties that received at least 1% of the total votes cast in the most recent Lok Sabha or legislative assembly elections, according to the statement.
