The wrong reform

Electoral bonds do not address corruption in political funding

The Supreme Court’s decision earlier this month to hear a petition by two non-governmental organisations challenging the electoral bond scheme raises hope of some public debate on this novel mode of electoral funding. The apex court has not, however, set a date for the hearing, which has already been delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic. It is vital that the issue be addressed sooner rather than later, given the questionable ethics in the design of the scheme. Introduced in 2017 by then finance minister Arun Jaitley, these bonds were meant to be an alternative to the growing complaints of black money