Boost in political funding through electoral bonds has been brought to light by the Election Commission. Disclosures on the Commission's website from April 2018 to 2023 highlight eight instances when the BJP received over a billion rupees in a single day, with one occurrence soaring to two hundred billion rupees. The Election Commission, following a 2019 Supreme Court order, obtained data on donations received through electoral bonds from various political parties, the details of which had been submitted to the court unopened.
DMK, AIADMK, AAP, and SP Disclose Donor Names
The latest data from yesterday, combined with that from the Indian State Bank, continues to cause a stir. Primarily, the BJP, Congress, DMK, AIADMK, and NCP have disclosed the donations received through bonds. All national, state, regional levels, and unrecognized but registered political parties have shared the donation data obtained from electoral bonds with the Election Commission.
Political parties like DMK, AIADMK, AAP, and the Samajwadi Party have revealed the names of major contributors. CPI (M), CPI, NPP, and BSP kept their books crystal clear stating no donations were received through electoral bonds. CPI (M) and CPI have declined such donations on ethical grounds.
Political Parties Provide Date-wise Details of Bonds
Most political parties that have received donations through electoral bonds have declared the exact values of such bonds date-wise. There were 11 recognized political parties including DMK, AIADMK, Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF), Janata Dal Secular (JDS), Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (JKNC), Maharashtravadi Gomantak Party (MGP), Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Samajwadi Party, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), and Janata Dal (United) who shared detailed contributions including the names and amounts given by donors through electoral bonds.
519 Parties Submit Manifestos
A total of 519 parties, across national, state, and unrecognized but registered bodies, have submitted their manifestos to the Election Commission. The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha is among those who have yet to file their manifestos. Future Gaming and Services and Megha Engineering & Infra have donated substantial amounts through electoral bonds to DMK. Future Gaming donated 509 billion rupees while Megha Engineering contributed 105 billion. These companies have spearheaded significant government infrastructure projects. Other top contributors include Apollo Group, India Cements, Ramco Cements, and Triveni.
Election Commission Publishes Details Publicly
The Election Commission has made the details of electoral bonds, which were submitted in sealed covers, public. The disclosures presumably relate to the period prior to April 12, 2019. Information about bonds issued and redeemed after this date was made public by the Election Panel last week. According to a Commission statement, political parties filed the bond data in sealed covers as instructed by the Supreme Court on April 12, 2019.
The Commission announced that it received digital data in a pen drive along with physical copies returned by the Supreme Court registry. This data was uploaded to the Election Commission's website, accessible through this URL:
Commission Released Data from April 2019 to Date Last Thursday
Last Thursday, the Election Commission released data on electoral bonds issued from April 12, 2019, to February 15, 2024. It even approached the Supreme Court to request the return of previous period's data to be made public as well. The Commission had submitted details of electoral bonds sold and cashed before April 12, 2019, to the Supreme Court following interim orders passed on April 12, 2019, and November 2, 2023.
