Political Donations Through Electoral Bonds: Key Players Involved
Donations to the Congress and the SP were made under the names “President, All India Congress Committee” and “Adyaksha Samajwadi Party,” despite the fact that the majority of the electoral bonds have been issued in the names of political parties.
Congress Questions Discrepancies in Donor and Recipient Data
The opposition Congress said there was a disparity in the number of entries in donor and recipient files—18,871 versus 20,421—shortly after the data was made public. It also questioned why, despite the fact that the program for anonymous political donations was launched in 2017, the data supplied only covered the months of April through May of 2019. Jairam Ramesh, general secretary of the Congress, added that the party is still in favor of distinct bond ID numbers to accurately identify contributors with recipients. “Since 2019, more than 1,300 businesses and individuals have contributed electoral bonds, totaling more than 6,000 crore to the BJP.”
BJP’s Electoral Bonds and Allegations of Corruption
In an interview with media outlets, Ramesh said that the entire incident revealed the BJP’s “corrupt tactics.” He said there was a pattern to this extortion, with multiple companies buying electoral bonds soon after being raided or winning a contract. Additionally, he claimed that because the plan did not require any business to donate more than a little portion of its income, it was more conducive to money laundering through shell corporations.
Congress Calls for Transparency: Demands a White Paper on BJP’s Finances
On March 14, the Congress demanded that the BJP release a white paper on its finances if it was serious about democracy. The Congress claimed that the BJP had exploited Central agencies, such as the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), to obtain Rs. 400 crore through electoral bonds from 45 companies following raids on them.
Central Agencies Raids and Donations: Congress Raises Extortion Concerns
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge highlighted media reports claiming that subsequent to raids by central investigative authorities, fifteen additional corporations made donations to the BJP. Was there extortion, looting, blackmail, or pressure to obtain more donations? In a post on the social media site X, Kharge claimed, “A new investigation reveals 15 more companies donated to BJP after ED, CBI, and Income Tax raids, making it a total of 45 companies paying BJP nearly Rs 400 crore.”
Kapil Sibal Criticizes the Electoral Bonds Scheme
“The person who started this scheme was our former Finance Minister [Arun Jaitley] and he thought that in this manner, no political party would be able to compete with us [BJP] and he was proven right,” Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal remarked, criticizing the BJP-led Centre over the matter. According to Sibal, it needs to be looked into whose political party received the largest donation.
RJD Leader Manoj Jha: BJP is the Most Corrupt Political Party in History
On March 15, senior RJD leader Manoj Jha claimed that the electoral bond data demonstrated that the BJP, which is now in power at the Center, is “the most corrupt political party in the history” of the nation. The data, which has been posted on the Supreme Court’s website, according to Jha, also contradicts the BJP’s “nationalistic pretensions” and supports the accusation that central investigative agencies are being abused for political purposes.
The Rajya Sabha MP further mentioned that “a private company ended up buying electoral bonds a few days after the ED raided it.” Connecting the links allows anyone to determine what the purportedly biggest political party of the world has been up to.”
Nirmala Sitharaman Defends the Electoral Bond System
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman acknowledged on March 15 that although the system may not be perfect, it was “one bit better” than the previous system of political finance, which was “completely imperfect,” and that significant assumptions had been made in the wake of the data release.
It’s possible that the electoral bond system isn’t ideal. The ruling on electoral bonds by the Supreme Court should serve as a lesson to us. I’m not making any comments about whether or not there is a new law pertaining to this. Will work to ensure that there is openness,” Sitharaman declared during a press conference.
Furthermore, Sitharaman rejected as “assumptions” any connection between government probe agencies’ raids on businesses and those businesses’ later contributions to electoral bonds. In response to a query at the conclave, Sitharaman remarked, “I think you’ve based yourself on huge assumptions, that the money was given after the Enforcement Directorate raid happened.”
Will Modi and BJP Win a Third Term? Political Observers Weigh In
The information made public still does not link purchasers of electoral bonds to beneficiaries, making it impossible to determine which parties were being funded by which individuals and businesses. On March 16 at 3 p.m., the Election Commission will release the schedule for the next Lok Sabha elections. Political observers strongly believe that Modi and the BJP will win a third term. In addition to the BJP’s advantage in opinion polls and far bigger campaign budget, Modi is still seen as popular with the public after a decade in power.
What the Supreme Court informs the SBI
The Supreme Court stated on March 15 that the SBI is “duty bound” and must reveal the distinct alphanumeric codes of the electoral bonds that political parties have received, while also requesting an explanation from the bank for its failure to do so.
Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud led a five-judge panel that stated that the Supreme Court had ordered the disclosure of all bond information, including the buyer, the amount, and the date of purchase, in its ruling on the electoral bonds issue. A day after the Election Commission released the whole list of organizations that had bought electoral bonds in order to make political donations, the CJI noted that all information must be provided by the SBI. The bench, also comprising Justices Sanjiv Khanna, B.R. Gavai, J.B. Pardiwala, and Manoj Misra, issued notice to the SBI and posted the matter for hearing on March 18.
“Who is going to be in the SBI? Due to the fact that, in our opinion, we had specifically ordered the publication of all bond information, including the buyer, the purchase price, and the date of purchase. The bond numbers have not been made public. The CJI pulled up the bank and stated, “That has to be disclosed by the SBI.” The parties receiving the donations would be matched with the individuals who had bought the electoral bonds thanks to the distinct alphanumeric numbers.
“The bond numbers have not been made public by them [SBI]. The CJI stated that the SBI must make that information public. “But honestly, since they had a duty to disclose, we can take exception to what they have disclosed.”
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