How ED And Electoral Bonds Became An Extortion Tool For BJP, People Have Lost Their Entire Faith On ED, CBI And Judiciary; How Did This Controversy Escape Scrutiny By ‘Modi Ka Parivaar’?
In a democracy purportedly built on principles of transparency and fairness, the unsettling revelation of corporations funnelling exorbitant sums into electoral bonds raises grave concerns. Why, one must ask, do these entities splurge thousands of crores to bankroll political parties? Such a question gnaws at the conscience of every citizen, highlighting the insidious grip of corporate influence on the electoral process. This cooperation has not only eroded the trust of the common citizen but also exposed the failures of regulatory institutions like the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), and the judiciary, which appear more as extensions of ruling parties than independent entities.
Electoral Bonds, The Shady Handshake Between Corporates, BJP And Political Parties
In a nation where democracy is touted as the cornerstone of governance, the unsettling question that one must ask –
Why do corporations allocate staggering sums, running into thousands of crores, to purchase electoral bonds, thereby funding political parties?
This query looms large in the minds of the citizens of this country, raising concerns about the integrity of the electoral process and the undue influence wielded by corporate entities.
The recent revelations paint a murky picture – some of India’s largest corporations have dabbled in the electoral bond market, with eye-watering figures being thrown around like confetti at a lavish party.
A Reliance Group company, for instance, didn’t hesitate to shell out a mind-boggling 410 crores for these bonds.
And it’s not just one or two companies; India’s energy behemoths, spanning various sectors from mining to solar power, collectively splurged over 3600 crores on electoral bonds, accounting for a staggering 30% of the total purchases.
To put this financial frenzy into perspective, Vedanta Limited forked out a cool 400 crores for electoral bonds, while the Aditya Birla Group wasn’t far behind, tossing in 464 crores. RP-Sanjeev Goenka Group and Rumgta Sons Private Limited didn’t shy away either, contributing 492 crores and 100 crores, respectively.
Even players like Torrent Power, Jindal Steel and Power Ltd, and Genus Power Infrastructure Ltd joined the party, throwing their weight behind electoral bonds.
In a bid to appear environmentally conscious, green energy companies also jumped on the bandwagon, collectively chipping in around 230 crores.
Ostrov Private Limited and Austro Madhya Vint Private Limited, subsidiaries of the Renew Power Group, thought nothing of splurging 17 crores on electoral bonds, while GreenKo Cup group nonchalantly dropped 35 crores into the electoral bond pot.
But the story doesn’t end there.
India’s banking and finance giants, including Bajaj Finance, Piramal Enterprises, and Edelweiss Group, collectively pumped a whopping 123 crores into electoral bonds between April 1, 2019, and January 2024.
The irony reaches its peak when one realizes that even Uday Kotak, the billionaire banker who had publicly questioned the electoral bond scheme, succumbed to its allure, purchasing bonds through his entity, Infina Finance Private Limited, despite facing losses.
Vasavi Avenues LLP and Bain Global Resources LLP, established just months prior, splurged 5 crores each on these bonds, showcasing a disturbing trend of young businesses diving headfirst into the quagmire of political financing.
What’s even more alarming is the audacity displayed by loss-making companies, which went to great lengths to purchase electoral bonds, far exceeding their financial capabilities.
The Keventer Group, for instance, forked out a staggering 500 crores for these bonds, a figure a hundred times higher than its annual profit.
Similarly, Qwik Supply Chain, despite a meager profit of 110 crores, didn’t think twice before allocating 410 crores to electoral bonds.
Bharti Airtel and Navya Yuga Engineering, despite languishing in losses for four years, shockingly poured in 198 crores and 55 crores, respectively, into the electoral bond abyss.
But who reaps the lion’s share of the benefits from this labyrinthine electoral bond scheme?
It’s no secret that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerges as the poster child of this funding bonanza, raking in over 7800 crores, making it the biggest beneficiary by a substantial margin.
Not far behind is the Trinamool Congress (TMC), pocketing a hefty 1396.94 crores, followed closely by the Congress Party, which amassed over 1334.36 crores.
In a scathing indictment of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the electoral bond scheme, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi didn’t mince words, accusing the government of presiding over “the world’s largest extortion racket.”
The irony of this statement is palpable, given the Congress Party’s own substantial haul from electoral bonds.
When A Major Bank Gets Involved
The recent disclosure by the Election Commission of India (ECI), following the directive from the Supreme Court, sheds light on a murky affair of corporate largesse in the political sphere.
The State Bank of India (SBI) revealed this information on March 12, revealing a labyrinth of transactions involving electoral bonds.
By March 15, as mandated by the apex court, the ECI made this data public on its website, laying bare the extent of corporate involvement in funding political parties.
Divulged in two sets by the SBI, the data unveils a staggering reality – a total of 22,217 bonds were purchased between April 1, 2019, and February 15, 2024, with 22,030 bonds subsequently encashed by political entities during the same period.
This avalanche of financial transactions prompts a probing inquiry into the motives and methods behind these electoral bond purchases.
The Murky Dealings
A cursory examination of the purchasing patterns reveals a disconcerting trend.
Take, for instance, Rithwik Projects Pvt Ltd, owned by BJP Member of Parliament, CM Ramesh.
The company’s acquisition of electoral bonds worth 5 crores coincided with its procurement of a 1098 crore Engineering Procurement and Construction contract for the Sunni Hydroelectric project in Himachal Pradesh, just preceding crucial assembly elections in Tripura, Meghalaya, and Nagaland.
Furthermore, a mere two months later, the company doubled down, purchasing bonds worth 40 crores.
Intriguingly, these transactions occurred shortly after another project, the Tapuvan Vishnu Gard Hydroelectric project in Uttarakhand, suffered a catastrophic collapse during underground tunneling at an ecologically sensitive site.
Similarly, the infamous ‘Lottery King’ Santiago Martin’s foray into electoral bond purchases raises eyebrows.
Martin’s involvement came when allegations from the Enforcement Directorate of engaging in a criminal conspiracy to withhold unsold lottery tickets unlawfully and falsely claim top prizes on said tickets, leading to the attachment of 411 crores to the firm’s bank account.
Likewise, Meghna Engineering and Infrastructure Limited found itself under the scrutinizing gaze of the income tax department since 2019, facing allegations of tax evasion.
Vedanta Limited, another significant player in the electoral bond murk with purchases amounting to 410 crores, became embroiled in a bribery scandal involving a Member of Parliament in 2022.
Moreover, both the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) initiated investigations into potential money laundering activities linked to the company.
The roll call of dubious dealings doesn’t end there.
Notably, Uday Kotak, embroiled in a protracted dispute with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) over shareholding regulations, saw a sudden change in fortune after dipping into the electoral bond pool.
Following Kotak’s electoral bond purchases, the RBI, which had been pressuring him to reduce his shareholding to 10%, surprisingly relented, permitting him to maintain a 26% stake in the bank.
These revelations paint a damning portrait of a system where corporate interests intertwine with political maneuverings, blurring the lines between governance and vested interests.
The electoral bond scheme, purportedly designed to safeguard anonymity and curb corruption, appears instead to be a conduit for vested interests to subvert democratic processes, with corporations leveraging their financial muscle to influence political outcomes to their advantage.
India’s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, often heralded as the “Fountain of Truth” by her party, attempts to dismiss the glaring connections between electoral bond purchases and enforcement directorate actions as a mere “huge assumption.”
Sitharaman adamantly asserts that the electoral bond scheme facilitated a transition from a chaotic system to one governed by law, conveniently overlooking the tangled web of influence and corruption that this scheme has woven.
Indeed, the electoral bond scheme, championed by the BJP through a series of amendments, stands as an example of the murky art of political funding, revealing how the political elite and crony capitalists have manipulated the levers of power in the world’s largest democracy for their benefit.
The Truth
The opaque nature of the electoral bond system, ostensibly designed to benefit the ruling party, raises serious questions about the sanctity of democracy and the undue influence wielded by corporate juggernauts in shaping the political arena.
The entanglement between corporates and political parties, as disclosed by the electoral bond story, represents a betrayal of trust towards the common citizens of India.
The symbiotic relationship between these two powerhouses has created a system where the interests of the ordinary people are sidelined in favor of the agendas of the elite.
Through their financial muscle, corporations exert undue influence on political decisions, while political parties, in turn, offer favorable policies and regulations, creating a vicious cycle of patronage and exploitation.
In this deceit, the failure of regulatory bodies like the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), and the judiciary to hold these actors accountable only serves to deepen the disillusionment of the masses.
Rather than acting as impartial arbiters of justice, these institutions often appear to function as extensions of the ruling party, prioritizing political allegiances over the interests of the citizens and the country.
The independence and integrity of these institutions, crucial for upholding the rule of law and ensuring justice, have been compromised by political interference and manipulation.
Instead of serving as strongholds of democracy, they have become mere tools in the hands of those in power, undermining the very foundations of a democratic society.
The plight of the common citizen, fooled by the facade of democracy while being subjected to the whims of a corporate-political nexus, indicates the urgent need for systemic reform.
The judiciary must assert its independence and autonomy, free from political influence, to restore faith in the rule of law.
Similarly, regulatory bodies like the ED and CBI must be empowered to investigate and prosecute without fear or favor, holding accountable those who abuse their power for personal gain.
The Last Bit, Behind this labyrinthine scheme looms the figure of BJP’s poster boy, Narendra Modi.
How else could such a system be promoted and perpetuated if not under the tacit blessing of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the patriarch of the “Modi Ka Parivaar”?
The electoral bond data serves as a damning indictment of the cozy nexus between political power and corporate interests, with Modi’s shadow looming large over every transaction and maneuver.
As the custodian of India’s democratic principles, Modi’s failure to uphold transparency and accountability in political funding raises serious questions about the integrity of his leadership and the BJP’s commitment to genuine reform.
