Electoral bonds: Citizens don't have right to know source of funding, govt tells SC
R. Venkataramani expressed his perspective to the Supreme Court on Sunday regarding the challenges to the «opaque» electoral bond system for funding political parties.
He emphasized that the Constitution does not grant citizens a fundamental right to know the funding sources, urging the Court not to venture into policy matters related to regulating electoral bonds.
Ahead of the October 31 hearing before a five-judge bench led by Chief Justice D. Y.
Chandrachud, Venkataramani argued that the electoral bond scheme doesn't infringe on existing rights and cannot be deemed contrary to any constitutional provisions. He asserted that a law lacking such contradiction cannot be invalidated for other reasons.
Venkataramani clarified that judicial review isn't about critiquing state policies to propose alternative solutions.
He referred to the Supreme Court's 2003 judgment in the People's Union for Civil Liberties case, highlighting that the right to know a candidate's criminal history, crucial for informed voting, differs from the current case's context.
According to the Attorney General, the electoral bond scheme upholds contributor confidentiality, promotes clean contributions, and ensures compliance with tax obligations without violating any existing rights. He stressed that the right to know everything for undefined purposes doesn't exist.
He advised the Supreme Court to consider the parliamentary debates on the matter, emphasizing that even when the court identifies a new aspect as part of a right, the subject's review or testing should be left to public and parliamentary discussions, aligning with the separation of powers.
