Assembly Elections 2023: Electoral bonds worth over Rs 1,000 crore sold in November, 400% rise since 2018

Electoral bonds worth Rs 1,006.03 crore were sold and encashed in the 29th tranche of their sale between November 6 and November 20, a four-time increase in comparison to the sales during the Assembly elections in Telangana, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Mizoram in 2018, The Indian Express reported citing State Bank of India data accessed through the Right to Information Act.

In 2018, the amount stood at Rs 184.20 crore during the sale of the sixth tranche of electoral bonds from November 1 to November 11. The Assembly elections in 2018 were held in the November-December period.

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At Rs 359 crore, Hyderabad, the capital of Telangana, recorded the highest volume during the sale of the 29th tranche of electoral bonds last month. On the second spot was Mumbai at Rs 259.30 crore and Delhi at Rs 182.75 crore. In terms of redemption or the encashing of these bonds, the Delhi branch came on top at Rs 882.80 crore while Hyderabad stood second at Rs 81.50 crore.

Among the other states that went to polls, electoral bonds worth Rs 31.50 crore were sold in Jaipur, Rajasthan; Rs 5.75 crore in Raipur, Chhattisgarh and Rs 1 crore in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh. While no bonds were encashed in these three states, Mizoram saw no sale of electoral bonds altogether.

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According to The Indian Express, a reading of the SBI data suggests that the most funding came from Hyderabad, Mumbai and Delhi, and went to parties in Delhi where national parties are headquartered.

The electoral bonds scheme, launched by the BJP government in 2018, has come under the Supreme Court’s radar following petitions challenging its validity. It has also come under scrutiny over its opacity since the names of donors are kept secret. SBI is the only bank authorised to issue electoral bonds.

The 29th tranche of electoral bonds was announced on November 4, two days after the Supreme Court reserved its verdict on a batch of petitions challenging its validity. Political parties have so far garnered Rs 15,922.42 crore through the electoral bonds scheme since its launch in 2018.