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The Electoral Bond Scheme, designed with the amendments in the Acts viz. The Companies Act 1956 and the Peoples Representation Act 1951 was introduced by the BJP – led Union Government that promised ‘transparency’ in the functioning of the government. In fact the Electoral Bond is an oxymoron of such promise.
A brief recall of the Reserve Bank of India Act 1934 will throw more light on the hidden as well as dark side of the Electoral Bonds. The Negotiable Instruments Act 1881 mentions for instance Promissory Note, Bill of Exchange or Cheque etc. The very purpose of negotiable instruments is passing on the value mentioned in them any number of times to any others for due consideration, which are helpful in many trade and other transactions. To serve the purpose, the Negotiable instrument may be through ‘bearer’ and ‘order’ means.
In respect of order instrument, the owner of the instrument must endorse it to any other at anytime with his due signature at the back to whom he intends to pass on the value of the instrument.
Bearer instrument can be passed on to any number of times with mere delivery of the instrument to any other, whom the present bearer desires to pass on. No need of endorsing with any signature.
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For example cheque is basically a bearer instrument and can be converted into an order instrument by striking the word ‘bearer’ in it and making due endorsement. Next, the bank draft is an order instrument and can be passed on to other by due endorsement. It cannot be converted into a bearer instrument.
In legal parlance the passing on process is called ‘negotiation’. The instruments that act in the process are negotiable instruments. In respect of Promissory Notes, they are payable on demand by the executor; that is why it is called as demand promissory note (DPN). DPN is an order instrument for negotiation. DPN cannot be a bearer instrument with one exception. That exception is available only to Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Only Reserve Bank of India can issue demand promissory note payable to a bearer. Mere delivery of that bearer instrument is sufficient for negotiation and no endorsement is required.
Almost all the people in India have transacted that bearer DPN issued by RBI which are all nothing but currency notes.
This power is exclusively vested with RBI as per the Sec.31 of the Reserve Bank of India Act 1934.
Under the Electoral Bond Scheme, the Union Government has authorized designated institutions to issue promissory note to the bearer. State Bank of India (SBI) is authorized to issue Electoral Bond. Electoral Bond is a demand promissory note payable to the bearer and it can be transferred to any number of persons. The name of the Corporate or the individual who has purchased the Bond from the bank is not mentioned in the Bond. To whom it has to be negotiated will also be not mentioned in it – like currency notes. The political party which receives the Bond from the bearer of the Bond (need not be the purchaser of the Bond) will not know on the face of it, who has purchased the Bond. The political party, which receives the Bond will present the Bond to the designated Branch of State Bank of India (SBI) and get the amount credited by their account. SBI will pay.
The non transparent, Electoral Bond Scheme is legislated by the ‘BJP – led Union government. The Bond purchaser will not be known to anyone, except the Bond issuing SBI. What a unique scheme to circumvent the law that protects the Bond purchaser from the fold of Department of Income Tax and other Agencies. There is every possibility of utilizing black money to purchase the Bond. This is another way of converting black money into white money as was witnessed in the demonetization of Rs.500/- and Rs.1,000/- currency notes in 2016. Bribe is modified as Bond. Did the people elect the BJP to bring amendments in the various Acts to encourage ‘Bribe in disguise’?
