Big Companies Donated Crores Through Unknown Firms, Individuals: The Reporters' Collective On Electoral Bonds

The electoral bonds data does not map electoral bond buyers to recipients, leaving it unclear which individual and corporate donors were funding which parties

The Reporters' Collective, a news website run by independent journalists, in its analyses of the electoral bonds data released by the Election Commission found companies and individuals donated crores of rupees to political parties under circumstances that would merit a detailed look.

According to The Reporters' Collective, some of the companies and people who have donated in crores include a Kotak group company that donated using the same scheme that billionaire banker Uday Kotak had questioned; a company linked to YSR Congress Party MP Alla Ayodhya Rami Reddy that donated over Rs 100 crore; a Reliance Group accounts man, Laxmidas Vallabhdas Merchant, who is among the top 100 donors, and a Reliance Group company called Qwik Supply Chain Pvt Ltd, which was the third-largest donor.

The electoral bonds account for a lion's share of political donations in the country. The Supreme Court ruled them illegal last month, saying the scheme violated the right of voters to know who was financing their representatives.