 "Govt authorises sale of 27th tranche of electoral bonds from Monday")
The Centre has authorised the State Bank of India (SBI) to oversee the sale of electoral bonds, the Ministry of Finance announced on Friday. The bonds will be issued and encashed through 29 SBI branches from July 3-12, 2023. While SBI has many branches, only these 29 have been authorised to sell electoral bonds. The decision comes ahead of the Assembly elections in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana, and Mizoram.
SBI branches in the following cities have been authorised for the sale of electoral bonds – Delhi, Chandigarh, Shimla. Srinagar, Dehra Dun, Mumbai, Jaipur, Raipur, Bhopal, Gandhinagar, Panaji, Lucknow, Bhubaneswar, Kolkata, Ranchi, Patna, Itanagar, Gangtok, Agartala, Kohima, Aizawl, Guwahati, Shilong, Imphal, Visakhapatnam, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, and Thiruvananthapuram
Electoral bonds are valid for 15 calendar days from the date of issue. If an electoral bond is deposited after the validity period, no payment will be made to the political party. Electoral bonds deposited by an eligible political party in their account will be credited on the same day. Electoral bonds have been seen as an alternative to cash donations made to political parties as part of efforts to make political funding transparent. Electoral Bonds can be purchased by a person who is a citizen of India or incorporated or established in India.