India Inc expresses concern on breach of confidentiality

Industry chambers of commerce – CII, Ficci, and Assocham – on Monday expressed their concern on the issue of disclosure of the alpha-numeric numbers of the electoral bonds.

However, the intervention application filed by the three on Monday through senior advocate, Mukul Rohatgi was dismissed by the Supreme Court on the ground that it was not listed and therefore cannot be taken up for hearing.

The prayer of the industry chambers was that the purchases of the electoral bonds were on the statutory assurance of confidentiality. The purchasers of the bonds had a legitimate expectation of confidentiality and the purchase of the bonds was made on the basis of this assurance. The direction for disclosure of alpha-numeric numbers of the electoral bonds retrospectively, therefore violates the principles of certainty and predictability of law and therefore, such disclosure ought not to be mandated.

Refusing to hear an unlisted application, chief justice, DY Chandrachud said, “With effect from April 12, 2019, we had directed the collection of details. Everyone was put to notice at that time. This is why we did not ask for disclosure of bonds sold prior to the interim order. This was a conscious choice by the Constitution bench”.

The industry bodies were well aware of the ongoing proceedings in the electoral bonds case, the bench, also comprising justices Sanjiv Khanna, B R Gavai, J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, said and asked Rohatgi as to why they chose not to approach it earlier.

The industry’s petition, while acknowledging the necessity of disclosure under Article 14 read with Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution of India, said that it is imperative to recognise the potential adverse impact of mandating parties to breach confidentiality agreements and disclose information based on a new standard. Such a directive, if applied retrospectively, undermines the rule of law and presents grave implications for the industry’s interests.

When contacted by FE, Ficci said, “Ease of doing business is a key element of India’s competitiveness globally. Retrospective actions lead to reduction of business confidence for Indian and global investors. This was the basis for our application”.