NEW DELHI: As the Supreme Court dismissed pleas seeking stay on further sale of electoral bonds ahead of assembly elections, the Congress on Friday urged the top court to expose the bonds which it alleged had become a "dubious money laundering" operation to help one party.
Congress' chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala tweeted, "SC must expose #ElectoralBonds for what they have become-: 1.A dubious money laundering operation to help one party. 2.A veiled mechanism to legitimise quid-pro-quo deals. 3.An untraceable funnel for black money payments."
"If not now, then when?" he said.
Congress has been alleging that electoral bonds were designed to benefit the BJP.
The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed pleas seeking stay on further sale of electoral bonds, saying the scheme was in place since 2018, the bonds were released at periodical intervals without any impediment and safeguards were in place to prevent their misuse.
A bench headed by Chief Justice S A Bobde said it saw no justification to grant stay at this stage and dismissed the two applications moved by NGOs to put on hold any further sale of the electoral bonds ahead of the upcoming assembly elections in Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Assam, Kerala and Union territory of Puducherry from March 27 to April 29.