Electoral bonds account for 10 per cent to 100 per cent of all donations to regional parties in 2021-2022, as per a report in The Indian Express.
According to data by the Election Commission of India (ECI), the Biju Janata Dal received Rs 291 cr as "grants, donations and contributions", 100 per cent of which were through poll bonds, while the Samajwadi Party got 10 per cent of its funds via the bonds in the last financial year.
All political parties are required to furnish details of the financial contributions they get in excess of Rs 20,000 to the Election Commission of India, in accordance with the Representation of the People Act, 1951.
Similarly, the YSR Congress received Rs 60 cr via electoral bonds, accounting for 64 per cent of its total income of Rs 93.72 cr and 75 per cent of the income from grants, among others.
The Telangana Rashtriya Samithi (TRS), which is now the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) received Rs 153 cr via electoral bonds, making it 70 per cent of its total income (Rs 218.11 crore) and 79 per cent of the income from grants, contributions and donations.
Samajwadi Party received Rs 33 cr in donations from individuals, companies and electoral trusts.
Electoral bonds were introduced in 2018. It aims to keep the funding of political parties as transparent as possible. However, many critics argue that the bonds have been antithetical to the very idea of transparency as electoral bonds remain anonymous.
As they are sold by state-run State Bank of India (SBI), the government comes to know the credentials of the donors to opposition parties. Once the ruling dispensation comes to know of the funders of the opposition parties, critics further argue that the chances of disrupting free and fair elections are very high.
Published 22 December 2022, 09:20 IST