BJP Received Rs. 1,294 Crore Worth Electoral Bonds In Financial Year 2022-23

The ruling BJP has received Rs. 1,294 crore worth electoral bonds between March 2022 – March 2023, report states. As per the annual contribution report shared with the Election Commission of India (ECI) ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, a total of Rs. 2,800 crore worth electoral bonds sold between March 2022 – March 2023.

When the saffron party has received 46% of electoral bonds sold in the Financial Year 2023,  the country”s major Opposition party, the Congress has received only 6% in the form of donation. Thus, Congress has bagged Rs. 171 crore of the electoral bonds sold in the said period.

As of March 2023, Congress has received in total, Rs. 1,135 crore via electoral bonds which comprise 9.5% of total electoral bonds, the report adds.

Electoral bonds are interest-free banking tool or money instruments that can be bought by companies and individuals from authorised branches of the State Bank of India (SBI) in India. It is used as a tool to make donations to political parties and they are expected to reclaim electoral bonds within a stipulated time.

The electoral bond scheme, which was notified by the government on January 2, 2018, which pitched an alternative to cash donations made to political parties as part of efforts to bring in transparency in political funding. It can be purchased by any citizen of India or entity incorporated or established in the country. Only political parties registered under Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 and which secured not less than 1% of the votes polled in the last Lok Sabha election or an assembly poll are eligible to receive the electoral bonds.