The Supreme Court of India recently asked the Election Commission to release the Electoral bond data ahead of the 2024 Lok-Sabha elections. Now, the ECI has released the data, which has shocked everyone. Let’s have a look at the publishing and see what exactly is so shocking.
According to the data published by the Election Commission of India, a total of 1265 companies purchased electoral bonds worth Rs. 12,769 crore. However, out of the total Rs.12,769 Crore, Rs.5,945 crore worth of bonds were purchased by the top 20 donors. Moreover, there were various individual donors, too. According to data from the election commission, the top individual donors are MS SN Mohanty, Lakshmi Niwas Mittal, and Laxmidas Vallabhdas merchant. All three of them donated Rs.45 crore, Rs.35 crore, and Rs.25 crore, respectively.
Also Read: Hidden Cost of Electoral Freebies on Fiscal Deficit
However, the most shocking data was the data of the top donating companies. According to the Hindustan Times, 43 companies in the top 500 donors had a subscribed capital of just above Rs.1 lakh, which is the minimum mandated subscribed capital to buy the bonds. Moreover, they found 22 companies that were set up on April 12, 2019, which is the exact date when the first electoral bond was purchased.
But, the most shocking revelation was the top donating companies. The top donating company purchased bonds worth Rs.1,368 crore. However, the most shocking thing is that the company’s total revenue in the last 4 years was Rs. 215 crore. This shocked the people most: how can a company with a total revenue of Rs. 215 crore donate more than Rs. 1300 crore? Moreover, this is the case with more than 10 companies on the list, and all 10 of them are among the top donors.
