Meet BJP's biggest donors, who bought electoral bonds worth Rs 12146 crore

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged as the top beneficiary, with major donors including Megha Engineering & Infrastructure and Vedanta Ltd. The Congress also received substantial contributions. Trinamool Congress and regional parties like DMK and YSRCP also featured prominently among recipients.

The data unveiled by the Election Commission gave comprehensive insight on the distribution of funds among political parties through electoral bonds, amounting to a staggering Rs 12,146 crore. This revelation, covering approximately 74 per cent of the total issued bonds, was made possible following an order from the Supreme Court compelling the State Bank of India (SBI) to furnish the information.

Among the revelations, it was disclosed that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged as the foremost beneficiary, securing nearly half of the total funds raised through electoral bonds. Major contributors to the BJP included Hyderabad-based Megha Engineering & Infrastructure, with a substantial contribution of Rs 584 crore, Qwik Supply Chain with Rs 375 crore, and mining conglomerate Vedanta Ltd with Rs 230 crore. Additionally, Bharti Airtel also featured prominently, contributing Rs 183 crore to the party's coffers.

On the other hand, the Congress party received significant contributions from Vedanta (Rs 125 crore), MKJ Enterprises and associated firms (Rs 120 crore), and Western UP Power Transmission Co, a part of the Megha group, with Rs. 110 crore.

The data further highlighted that while nine entities donated over Rs 100 crore to the BJP, and another 11 contributed between Rs 50 crore and Rs 100 crore, the Congress had only three donors surpassing the Rs 100 crore mark, with an additional three falling in the Rs 50-100 crore range.

Trinamool Congress, standing as the third-largest recipient of electoral bond funds, received substantial contributions from Future Gaming and Hotel Services, amounting to Rs 542 crore, followed by Haldia Energy of the RPG Sanjeev Goenka group with Rs 28 crore.

Notably, Future Gaming emerged as the top donor, allocating significant portions of its funds to regional parties like Trinamool, DMK, and YSRCP, while also contributing Rs. 100 crore to the BJP and Rs. 50 crore to the Congress.

Megha Engineering, the second-largest donor, contributed Rs. 584 crore to the BJP, while BRS allocated Rs. 195 crore and DMK received Rs. 85 crore. Qwik Supply, identified with Reliance, donated Rs. 375 crore to the BJP, and smaller amounts to Shiv Sena and NCP.

It was revealed that Qwik Supply has connections to Reliance, although the latter clarified that the former is not a subsidiary. Qwik Supply's significant contributions primarily went to the BJP, with minor allocations to other political entities.

The data pertained to bonds purchased on or after April 12, 2019, in compliance with the Supreme Court's directive to SBI to disclose donor and recipient details exclusively for transactions from this date onwards.