Almost 80% of the party’s donations came from generous donors who chipped in at least Rs 10 crore each for the party.
The Other Side
In contrast to the fortunes of ‘powerful’ parties such as YSRCP and BJD, the opposition parties saw very poor inflows in terms of electoral bonds. Even parties that were in power in non-industrialized states did poorly, suggesting a connection between the presence of industries and strong electoral bond inflows.
The less-fortunate parties included UP-based Samajwadi Party and BSP, Karnataka-based JD(S), Jammu and Kashmir National Conference and Punjab-based Shiromani Akali Dal.
SP
The Samajwadi Party raised a measly Rs 13.21 crore, or 0.1% of the total funds. This suggests that the party, which is currently in opposition in Uttar Pradesh, faces significant challenges in attracting large donations and may rely more on smaller contributions from its supporters.
Shiv Sena
The Shiv Sena, which was partly in power during the period in which electoral bonds were issued, raised Rs 152.45 crore, constituting 1.23% of the total funds. It was helped by two big donations — Rs 85 crore from BG Shirke Construction Technology Ltd, and Rs 25 crore from Qwik Supplychain Pvt Ltd, which has reportedly been linked to the Mukesh Ambani group.
