A day before the Supreme Court hears the State Bank of India’s response regarding its failure to disclose the unique alphanumeric code for matching electoral bond donors to political parties, the Election Commission of India (ECI) lifted another veil of secrecy over political funding Sunday by revealing contributions received via electoral bonds by political parties in the run-up to the hotly-contested 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
The second tranche of data published by the ECI pertaining to donations received between March 2018 and April 2019 is crucial, as it contains voluntary disclosure of donor details by at least four regional parties: the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), Janata Dal (Secular) and Jammu & Kashmir National Conference (JKNC). While not entirely unprecedented — in 2021, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha had voluntarily disclosed a Rs 1 crore donation from Hindalco Industries Limited through an electoral bond in 2019-20 — this disclosure stands as the most extensive to date, albeit partial, shedding light on the exact donors behind each of four party’s coffers.
For example, Future Gaming and Hotel Services Pvt Ltd run by Santiago Martin, the largest contributor through electoral bonds, allocated nearly 40% of its total purchases exceeding Rs 1,300 crore from 2019 to 2024 to the DMK, the ruling party in Tamil Nadu. Similarly, Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd (MEIL), the second-largest purchaser of bonds of almost Rs 1,000 crore, gave away Rs 50 crore to the JDS in Karnataka. Narayana Murthy-led Infosys donated Rs 1 crore to JDS two months before the 2018 Karnataka elections. JKNC received Rs 50 crore from Sunil Mittal-promoted Bharti Airtel in 2019.
Meanwhile, some of the biggest political parties, such as the BJP, Congress, AAP, and TMC, among others, have refrained from disclosing any information about their donors. Notably, the BJP, in its submission to the ECI, asserted that it is not obligated by law to maintain records of the names and particulars of electoral bond donors, and therefore, did not possess such details. Three parties, namely the Communist Party of India, Communist Party of India (Marxist) and Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation, informed the Commission that it has chosen to not accept any donations via electoral bonds.
Although it’s not clear, how DMK, AIADMK, JDS and JKNC figured details of electoral bond donors given that the bond doesn’t carry their names in order to protect their identity, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha spokesperson Supriyo Bhattacharya had told this newspaper in April 2021 that his party found out about the donor only when Hindalco reached out seeking a receipt for the contribution.
According to Prashant Bhushan, who had argued the case on behalf of the petitioner Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) in Supreme Court, Sunday’s disclosure by the ECI only strengthens the argument for the State Bank of India to share the unique alphanumeric code for each bond purchased and redeemed.
Bhushan told this newspaper, “It’s evident now that parties know the identity of donors. The fact that some parties haven’t revealed the details only strengthens our argument that the State Bank of India must disclose the electoral bond numbers, enabling the public to match the donor with the political party.”
The first tranche of data made public by the ECI Thursday last week had two parts. First, the name of bond purchasers, the denomination and the date of purchase. Second, details of political parties, the denomination of bonds redeemed and when. All this was for bonds purchased and redeemed under the scheme from April 1, 2019 to February 15. The total amount donated under the scheme during this period was Rs 12,156 crore, of which almost half came from the top 20 donors alone.
This disclosure was forced by the Supreme Court which struck down the electoral bonds scheme introduced by the first Narendra Modi government in 2018. The Electoral Bond scheme, notified in January 2018, allowed individuals and companies to make donations to political parties. Essentially in the nature of a bearer instrument, it provided anonymity to its holders, and was hence challenged in the Supreme Court. On February 15 this year, the top court termed it “unconstitutional” and scrapped the scheme with immediate effect. It also directed SBI, the sole issuing authority, to provide all details of bond purchasers and their redemption to the ECI, which has been made public Thursday.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ruling at the Centre has emerged as the top recipient of funds through these bonds, garnering a substantial Rs 6,986.5 crore since their inception in 2018. Following closely behind are West Bengal’s Trinamool Congress, with Rs 1,397 crore, Congress with Rs 1,334 crore, and Bharat Rashtra Samithi with Rs 1,322 crore, as per the latest data disclosed by the EC. Odisha’s Biju Janata Dal (BJD) ranks as the fourth-largest beneficiary, having received Rs 944.5 crore, trailed by the DMK at Rs 656.5 crore, and Andhra Pradesh’s YSR Congress, which amassed nearly Rs 442.8 crore.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
First uploaded on: 18-03-2024 at 07:20 IST