“Back Door Linkage Between Party and Donors Was Possible”: Activist Lokesh Batra on Electoral Bonds

Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, leading a five-judge bench, emphasised the significance of transparency in political funding, rejecting the government’s stance against disclosing such information. The ruling not only invalidated electoral bonds but also struck down related amendments to key laws. 

At the forefront of challenging the electoral bond scheme stands Commodore Lokesh Batra, a 76-year-old war veteran turned transparency activist. His relentless pursuit through the Right to Information (RTI) Act has exposed the opacity surrounding political funding, despite facing threats and intimidation.

Batra’s scrutiny of the electoral bond scheme, initiated in 2017, led to over 80 RTI requests and a major expose in 2019, revealing the scheme’s flaws and the lack of accountability in political funding.