Huge donations by firms under criminal investigation or suspected of being shell companies have been funnelled to India's ruling BJP and other parties, new data showed, highlighting the backscratching ties between corporate titans and the government.
India's ruling Bhartiya Janata Party was far and away the single biggest beneficiary of the electoral bond scheme. Photo: DIBYANGSHU SARKAR / AFP/FileHuge donations by firms under criminal investigation or suspected of being shell companies have been funnelled to India's ruling BJP and other parties, new data showed, highlighting the backscratching ties between corporate titans and the
An AFP review of the list found that of the $1.5 billion donated through the scheme, at least $94 million was donated by 17 companies after they faced -- either directly or through their subsidiaries -- investigations for tax evasion, fraud or other corporate malfeasance."The electoral bond scheme was sinful in conception, faulty in design and intended to prevent transparency," lawmaker Abhishek Singhvi of the opposition Congress party told AFP.
The contentious electoral bond funding scheme has helped Prime Minister Narendra Modi's party build an immense campaign war chest dwarfing rivals. Photo: DIBYANGSHU SARKAR / AFP/FileLocal media reported in 2022 that the country's main financial crime agency began investigating the company in 2018 for allegedly paying bribes to facilitate Indian visas for Chinese technicians.No definitive proof of such a quid pro quo has surfaced.
But the new scheme did not close off other avenues of funding, including anonymous cash donations or tax-deductible electoral trusts in which multiple companies can pool money together for parties without public scrutiny.
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