Extortion Through Electoral Bond, Bengaluru Court Orders To File Case Against Finance Minister (image-instagram/nsitharaman)

A Bengaluru court on Friday ordered to file an FIR report against Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman over the allegation that she had extorted money for BJP through now scrapped electoral bonds.

The court has passed the order while hearing the petition filed by activist Adarsh Iyer, co-president, of Janaadhikara Sangharsha Parishath, a non-government organization.

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However, it is unclear even if the FIR is registered and if registered police cannot uphold an investigation without the approval of the President of India.

The petition also names the ED, BJP Chief Nadda, the Karnataka BJP Chief Vijayendra and former BJP MP Naleen Kumar Kateel. And thus in the case of Vijayendra, the sanction will have to come from the Karnataka governor as he is an MLA.

In February, the Supreme Court scrapped the electoral bonds scheme, calling it “unconstitutional” and saying it violated citizens’ right to information.

The now-scrapped scheme was introduced in 2018 by the central government aiming to replace the cash donations to political parties and seeking to improve the transparency in political funding.

The complaint alleges that the Financial minister conspired with ED and several individuals holding constitutional posts to conduct raids on aluminum and copper giants Vedanta, Sterlite and Aurobindo Pharma to extort money through electoral bonds amounting to over 8000 crores, reports The News Minute.

Hyderabad-based businessman P Sarath Chandra Reddy, director of Aurobindo Pharma, was arrested by the ED in the Delhi liquor scam on November 11, 2022. And just days later, Aurobindo Pharma bought Rs 5 crore worth of electoral bonds, which were encashed by the BJP on November 21.

After being approver in June 2023, the company donated an additional amount of Rs 25 crore to the BJP in November. In total, the company has purchased Rs 52 crore worth of electoral bonds in which Rs 34.5 crore went to BJP, Rs 15 crore to BRS and Rs 2.5 crore to the Telugu Desam Party.

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Meanwhile, reacting to the case, Karnataka Chief Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has demanded the resignation of the financial minister and said a report on the matter is to be submitted within three months.