The Aryavarth Express
Agency(New Delhi): Following the Election Commission’s release of electoral bond data, the Congress party expressed immediate concerns over apparent discrepancies in the data pertaining to the numbers of entries between donors and recipients—highlighting a gap of 1,550 entries. Additionally, queries have been raised regarding the commencement of data from April 2019, despite the scheme’s initiation in 2017, signaling a potential oversight or selective data presentation.
Amitabh Dubey, leading the Congress party’s research and monitoring efforts within its communication department, pointed out the mismatch in entries, sparking a broader discussion on the transparency of the electoral bond scheme. The conversation further intensified with remarks from Manickam Tagore, a Congress MP, who echoed the sentiment of transparency issues, suggesting a deliberate obfuscation by the State Bank of India (SBI), the sole issuer of these bonds.
The Youth Congress Chief, Srinivas BV, took the opportunity to critique the central government’s approach to political funding, interpreting Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s anti-corruption slogan in a critical light, and alleging a coercive fundraising strategy benefiting the BJP.
The list of electoral bond purchasers reads like a who’s who of Indian corporates, with significant contributions from industry giants across sectors—highlighting the broad corporate participation in political funding through this mechanism. Among them, companies like Vedanta Ltd., Bharti Airtel, and entities like Future Gaming have made substantial contributions, with the latter coming under scrutiny by the Enforcement Directorate.
The electoral bonds scheme, designed to anonymize political donations, faced legal challenges culminating in a Supreme Court ruling on February 15, which deemed the scheme unconstitutional. The ruling mandated the disclosure of donor and recipient details, thereby aiming to enhance transparency in political financing.
The Election Commission’s compliance with this directive, releasing detailed data on the buyers and beneficiaries of electoral bonds, marks a significant turn in the ongoing debate over political funding transparency in India. The disclosures have revealed a broad spectrum of parties as beneficiaries, including both major national parties and regional players, indicating the widespread use of electoral bonds in political financing.
The Congress party’s call for clarity and accountability in this matter reflects a larger concern over the integrity of political funding in India, pressing for reforms that ensure transparency and fairness in the electoral process.