Section135
The Finance Act, 2017

Amendment of section 31 of Act 2 of 1934

In force As on 07 Oct 2026

Ministry Finance Enacted 17 Apr 2017

Section 135 of the Finance Act, 2017 deals with amendment of section 31 of Act 2 of 1934. Amendment of section 31 of Act 2 of 1934 135. The Act was enacted on 17 Apr 2017.

Amendment of section 31 of Act 2 of 1934

135. In the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934, in section 31, after sub-section (2), the following sub-section shall be inserted, namely:—

'(3) Notwithstanding anything contained in this section, the Central Government may authorise any scheduled bank to issue electoral bond.

Explanation:— For the purposes of this sub-section, ''electroal bond" means a bond issued by any scheduled bank under the scheme as may be notified by the Central Government.'.

Section 135, The Finance Act, 2017.

Cross-references

Extracted from the operative text of the enactments themselves. Every destination below exists in our corpus.

This section refers to

  1. s. 31 Amendment of section 71

Related judgements & precedents

These are some judgments that construed this section, and hold precedence value. They hold authority on how to read, interpret and use this section.

  1. Association For Democratic Reforms vs Union Of India

    Supreme Court of India 15 Feb 2024 Binding (Supreme Court Constitution Bench) Reportable 2024 INSC 113

    Court's Decision & Legal Precedent

    The Electoral Bond Scheme violates Article 19(1)(a) by preventing disclosure of electoral contributions essential to informed voting. Voters have fundamental right to information about political funding as political parties are focal units in electoral system affecting policy outcomes. The purposes cited (curbing black money and protecting donor privacy) do not justify this extensive non-disclosure. Alternative measures like Electoral Trusts, direct banking channels with disclosure at Rs. 20,000+ threshold, and sector-specific audit requirements satisfy the objectives with lesser impact on fundamental rights. Removal of contribution caps in Section 182 of Companies Act is manifestly arbitrary as it fails to distinguish between profit-making and loss-making companies and treats corporations like individuals despite different capacities to influence politics. The right to know trumps donor privacy in balancing analysis as political contributions are public acts affecting public policy and representative democracy.

    On this section: Authorization for scheduled banks to issue electoral bonds. Held unconstitutional as it permitted anonymity contrary to right to information.

    Read the full order on eCourts India

The holding above is the ratio decidendi as extracted from the judgment by eCourts India, reproduced unaltered — it is a rendering of the court's reasoning, not a substitute for its words. Read the order itself before relying on it.

Questions about Section 135

What have the courts held on Section 135 of the Finance Act?

Association For Democratic Reforms vs Union Of India (15 Feb 2024) is the leading judgment on this section among those set out below: Authorization for scheduled banks to issue electoral bonds. Held unconstitutional as it permitted anonymity contrary to right to information.

How do I find court cases under Section 135 of the Finance Act?

In judgments and charge sheets this section is written several ways, and each form finds a different set of orders. These search the full text of every order eCourtsIndia holds, best matches first: Finance Act 2017 135, section 135 Finance Act 2017, section 135 of the Finance Act. Each opens the full list of orders on eCourtsIndia, where it can be narrowed by court, year and outcome. 1 reported judgment on this section is set out on this page, beginning with Association For Democratic Reforms vs Union Of India (15 Feb 2024).

What should I read with Section 135 of the Finance Act, and has it changed?

Its own text turns on section 31 (Amendment of section 71), so none of them can safely be read on its own.

When was Section 135 of the Finance Act enacted?

Section 135 of the Finance Act, cited as Finance Act 2017 135, was enacted on 17 Apr 2017. It is in force as at the date shown on this page.

Other sections of this Act

Source and method. Compiled from the enactments of Parliament and of the State legislatures as published on India Code, and republished together with commentary and other original matter under section 52(1)(q)(ii) of the Copyright Act, 1957. Structured, cross-referenced and maintained by eCourtsIndia. Harvested from the Income Tax Department's own portal at incometaxindia.gov.in, which publishes the Finance Acts section by section. India Code carries none of them: its Central community holds the Acts that stand as general law, and a Finance Act is an amending and rate-fixing instrument. This page is not a substitute for legal advice.