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{{Short description|none}} <!-- This short description is INTENTIONALLY "none" - please see WP:SDNONE before you consider changing it! -->
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{{Original research|date=December 2018}}
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[[File:Ink Bottle used in Indian Elections.jpg|thumb|Pledge in the Indelible Ink Bottle Package - "To cast vote, I shall not be bribed or corrupted in any manner. They are dangerous to our nation."]]
A number of measures have been suggested to improvise and strengthen the existing electoral practices in India.
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'''[2013]''' The CIC ruled that political parties can be held to be public authorities and come within the ambit of the Right to Information Act Companies Act.
'''[2013]''' After the CIC ruling, all the political parties banded together and backed "The Right to Information (Amendment) Bill, 2013" which was introduced in the Lok Sabha on August 12, 2013, amending the original act (RTI 2005). The Amendment removes political parties from the
=== Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)===
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(iii) It introduces "Electoral Bonds" as a means to make anonymous contributions to political parties. These bonds will be issued by the State Bank of India.<ref>{{cite web |title=PRS analysis of Finance Bill 2017 |url=https://www.prsindia.org/sites/default/files/bill_files/Analysis%20Proposed%20amendments%20to%20the%20Finance%20Bill.pdf |website=PRS India |accessdate=16 November 2019}}</ref>
<ref>{{cite news |title=Finance Bill 2017 passed in Lok Sabha. |url=https://
=== Electoral Bonds ===
{{Main|Electoral Bond}}
Introduced with the Finance Bill (2017), Electoral Bonds allow donors to pay political parties with banks as an intermediary. These bonds can only be issued by the State Bank of India.
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Any person who is a citizen of India or entities incorporated or established in India can buy electoral bonds. And then donate it to the political party of choice "anonymously". To buy and transfer these bonds, the person or entity has to provide some authentication details to the bank but the names of donors are kept confidential, even from political parties. Anonymity is intended to prevent the political victimization of the donor.<ref>{{cite web |title=Here's why India's electoral bonds make political funding even more opaque |url=https://qz.com/india/1593577/modis-electoral-bonds-make-2019-indian-election-funding-opaque/ |website=Qz |date=15 April 2019 |accessdate=16 November 2019}}</ref>
There is no limit on the quantity of bonds that can be purchased by an individual or a company. The bonds donated to political party must be encased within 15 days through its verified account, failed to so, the issuer of these bonds ''i.e.''State Bank of India deposits these into Prime Minister's Relief Fund.[https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/electoral-bond-scheme-transparency-elections-7243078/ Explained: Why is the electoral bond scheme being opposed by transparency activists?]
===Criticism of Electoral Bonds===
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==== Election Commission ====
The Election Commission expressed its opposition to [[Electoral Bonds]] during a hearing on the electoral bonds issue in the Supreme Court, citing its affidavit filled with the Law Ministry in 2017, terming it "a retrograde step". The poll panel led by senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi during the course of the hearing expressed concern over the anonymity of donor identity and clauses that may allow for shell companies and foreign entities/companies to fund (with no cap limits) and influence Indian elections.
The Election Commission argued in court that "the scheme "legalizes anonymity" but the right to vote means making an informed choice - knowing the candidate was only "half of the exercise" and citizens must know the parties which are funding the candidates."<ref>{{cite web |title=EC opposes anonymity involved in electoral bonds |url=https://www.livemint.com/news/india/ec-opposes-anonymity-involved-in-electoral-bonds-1554901750489.html |website=Live Mint |date=10 April 2019 |accessdate=16 November 2019}}</ref>
In a letter to Law Ministry written in May 2017, Election Commission stated “In a situation where the contribution received through electoral bonds are not reported, on perusal of the contribution report of political parties, it cannot be ascertained whether the political party has taken any donation in violation of provision under Section 29(b) of the RP Act which prohibits the political parties from taking donations from government companies and foreign sources.”<ref name="auto">{{cite web |title=What is the electoral bond scheme, and why is it being opposed by transparency activists|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/electoral-bond-scheme-transparency-elections-7243078/ |website=Indian Express |accessdate=29 March 2020}}</ref>
==== Civil Rights Societies ====
The introduction of Electoral Bonds received huge criticism from the civil rights societies and even the public in general. The concept of donor "anonymity" threatens the very spirit of democracy. The Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), a non-governmental organisation (NGO) argues that the additional amendments done in different Acts to pave the way for electoral bonds have "opened the floodgates to unlimited corporate donations to political parties and anonymous financing by Indian as well as foreign companies, which can have serious repercussions on Indian democracy". Opposition parties argue that this move keeps the political parties and the voters in dark, and at the same time only the ruling party has all the access to contribution records through state mechanisms like SBI and Income Tax Department.<ref>{{cite web |title=Electoral bonds: What's the controversy? |url=https://www.businesstoday.in/current/economy-politics/electoral-bonds-what-the-controversy/story/336747.html |website=Business Today |date=12 April 2019 |accessdate=16 November 2019}}</ref>
In a statement Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR)stated that "It may also be noted that the printing of these bonds & SBI commission for facilitating the sale and purchase of the bonds is paid from the taxpayers’ money by the central government.” ADR along with Common Cause another non-profit organization has moved to Supreme Court in 2017. Court had sought response from government and EC. However till March 2021 the case has not been heard in detail.<ref
==== RBI ====
An investigative article published by HuffPost India on November 18, 2019,<ref>{{cite web |title=Electoral Bonds: Seeking Secretive Funds, Modi Govt Overruled RBI |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.in/entry/rbi-warned-electoral-bonds-arun-jaitley-black-money-modi-government_in_5dcbde68e4b0d43931ccd200?guccounter=1 |website=HuffPost India |date = 18 November 2019|accessdate=19 November 2019}}</ref> examines a series of documents which show how the Reserve Bank of India was critical of the Electoral Bonds Schemes on multiple occasions, and how the Government of India ignored the concerns of the RBI time and time again and went ahead with its plans for the Electoral Bonds. The RBI said that the bonds would "undermine the faith in Indian banknotes and encourage money laundering."
=== Switch to a proportional system ===
Calls for a switch from First past the post to a proportional system have been growing since 2017, in lights of several states elections whose results have shown large wins in seats by parties receiving far less than 50 % of the popular votes<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.orfonline.org/research/the-shift-to-proportional-representation-is-it-time-for-india/|title=The shift to proportional representation: Is it time for India? | ORF|accessdate=31 March 2023}}</ref>
==Important events in India's History of Electoral Reform==
These can be summed up in the table shown below:
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== See also ==
* [[Combined approval voting|Combined Approval Voting]]
* [
* [[Political funding in India]]
==References==
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