New Delhi: The BJP received more than Rs 900 crore as donations from over 1,500 corporates between 2016 and 2018 over 16 times more than what the Congress got in the same period, a new report said Tuesday.
The Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) analysed the donations from corporates to national parties during the period 2016-18. According to the ADR analysis, during the period 2016-18 business houses donated a total of Rs 985.18 crore, constituting 93 per cent of the total contribution to political parties from known sources.
“Out of the six national parties, BJP received the maximum donations of Rs 915.596 crore from 1,731 corporate donors followed by Congress which received a total contribution of Rs 55.36 crore from 151 corporate donors and NCP with Rs 7.737 crore from 23 corporate donors in financial year 2016-17 and 2017-18,” the report said. It said during 2016-17 and 2017-18 fiscals, the voluntary contributions of BJP and the Congress above Rs 20,000 from corporates was 94 per cent and 81 per cent respectively.
Between financial years 2012-13 and 2017-18, the BJP received the maximum corporate donations of Rs 1,621.40 crore, constituting 83.49 per cent of the total corporate donations in six years. The ADR analysis said donations from corporates to national parties raised by 160 per cent between 2004-05 and 2011-12 and financial years 2016-17 to 2017-18. Between financial years 2012-13 and 2017-18, donations from corporates to national parties increased by 414 per cent, with a major drop in the percentage of corporate donations in financial year 2015-16.
Donations from corporates to national parties reduced by 25.07 per cent between financial year 2016-17 and 2017-18. The political parties considered for the report were Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Congress, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), Communist Party of India (CPI), CPM and All India Trinamool Congress (AITC).