New Delhi: The State Bank of India (SBI) has been authorised to issue and encash first electoral bonds from March 1 this year.
The first sale of Electoral Bonds will commence from March 1 for a period of 10 days i.e. up to March 10.
SBI can issue and encash Electoral Bonds initially at its 4 Authorised Branches, as given below:
The Union government had notified the Electoral Bond Scheme 2018 through a gazette notification on January 2 this year.
As per the provisions of the scheme, electoral bonds may be purchased by persons who are Indian citizens or entities established or incorporated in India.
Only political parties registered under Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 and which secured not less than one per cent of the votes polled in the last general election to Parliament or legislative assembly, would be eligible to receive the bonds.
The bonds can be encashed by political parties only through a bank account with the authorized bank. The bond deposited by the party to its account shall be credited on the same day.
Electoral bonds once purchased would be valid for 15 days from the date of issue and cannot be encashed if deposited after the expiry of the validity period.
