Electoral trusts received Rs 3,826.34 crore in contributions in Financial Year 2024-25 and disbursed Rs 3,826.35 crore to political parties, with the BJP receiving more than 82 per cent of the funds, the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) said on Friday.
In its latest report analysing contribution documents submitted to the Election Commission (EC), the NGO said 10 of the 20 registered electoral trusts declared receiving donations during FY25, while five did not have their reports available on the poll panel’s website even three months after the deadline.According to the ADR, a total of Rs 3,826.3417 crore was received from corporations and individuals during the financial year and Rs 3,826.3522 crore distributed to various political parties, in keeping with rules that mandate trusts to disburse at least 95 per cent of contributions received in a year.
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) received Rs 3,157.6549 crore, accounting for 82.52 per cent of the total funds distributed by the electoral trusts. The Indian National Congress (INC) received Rs 298.7795 crore or 7.81 per cent, while the All India Trinamool Congress (AITC) got Rs 102 crore (2.67 per cent). Nineteen other parties together received Rs 267.9178 crore.
Among the trusts, Prudent Electoral Trust disbursed the highest amount — Rs 2,668.4647 crore — to 15 political parties, followed by Progressive Electoral Trust, which donated Rs 914.97 crore to 10 parties.
The ADR said 228 corporate or business houses contributed Rs 3,636.819 crore, while 99 individuals donated Rs 187.6227 crore during the year. The top 10 donors together accounted for Rs 1,908.8621 crore — nearly 49.89 per cent of the total contributions.
Elevated Avenue Realty LLP was the single-largest donor, contributing Rs 500 crore, followed by Tata Sons Private Limited (Rs 308.1324 crore), Tata Consultancy Services Limited (Rs 217.6216 crore) and Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Limited (Rs 175 crore).
Sector-wise, manufacturing accounted for the largest share of donations at Rs 1,063.128 crore (27.78 per cent), followed by real estate (Rs 629.17 crore or 16.44 per cent) and communication/IT/telecom (Rs 451.8582 crore or 11.81 per cent).
State-wise, Maharashtra emerged as the largest source of contributions at Rs 1,225.4293 crore, followed by Telangana (Rs 358.25 crore), Haryana (Rs 212.9 crore), West Bengal (Rs 203.8538 crore) and Gujarat (Rs 200.50 crore). However, the ADR noted that the donors’ addresses were not disclosed for contributions worth Rs 1,065.2048 crore, the bulk of which went to Prudent Electoral Trust.
The report also flagged compliance issues. Five of the 15 trusts that submitted annual reports declared nil contributions in FY25. The contribution reports of five registered trusts — Swadeshi Electoral Trust, AB General Electoral Trust, PD General Electoral Trust, Janta Nirvachak Electoral Trust and Independent Electoral Trust — were not available on the EC’s website, the ADR said.
It further pointed out that Harmony Electoral Trust received Rs 35.55 crore but disbursed Rs 35.65 crore — Rs 10 lakh more than it received during the year.
Under the Electoral Trusts Scheme, 2013, notified after amendments to the Income Tax Rules, electoral trusts are set up to receive voluntary contributions from companies and individuals and distribute those to registered political parties in a transparent manner. The approval of such trusts is granted by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) and is subject to periodic renewals.
Recommending greater transparency, the ADR said trusts that fail to comply with the EC’s guidelines should face strict action and that details of corporate political contributions should be placed in the public domain through company disclosures.
The electoral bonds scheme, which had allowed anonymous corporate and individual donations to political parties through banking instruments, was scrapped in February 2024 by the Supreme Court, which held it unconstitutional and violative of the voters’ right to information. (Agencies)