Six national parties collectively reported receiving Rs 2,669.87 crore in donations and contributions

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has reported the highest income among national parties for the financial year 2023-24, declaring total earnings of Rs 4,340.47 crore, according to a report by the poll rights body, Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR). This impressive figure accounts for 74.57% of the combined income of six national parties during the review period.

“The BJP declared a total income of Rs 4,340.473 crore during FY 2023-24 but spent only 50.96% of it, amounting to Rs 2,211.69 crore. The total income of Congress was Rs 1,225.12 crore, while its expenditure for the year was Rs 1,025.25 crore or 83.69% of its total income,” the ADR report stated.

A significant portion of the income for these national parties came from donations via electoral bonds. The BJP secured the highest amount at Rs 1,685.63 crore, followed by Congress at Rs 828.36 crore and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) with Rs 10.15 crore. Together, these three parties raised Rs 2,524.14 crore through electoral bonds. However, the Supreme Court struck down the scheme as “unconstitutional and manifestly arbitrary” in May 2024.

In total, Rs 4,507.56 crore worth of electoral bonds were redeemed in the 2023-24 fiscal, with national parties accounting for 55.99% — Rs 2,524.14 crore — of the redeemed amount. According to data from the State Bank of India, obtained through an RTI application filed by ADR, this significant portion highlights the growing reliance of political parties on this controversial funding method.

The report also detailed the major areas of expenditure for these parties. For Congress, the bulk of spending was on election-related expenses, totaling Rs 619.67 crore, followed by Rs 340.70 crore on administrative costs. In comparison, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) spent Rs 56.29 crore on administrative expenses and Rs 47.57 crore on employee costs.

Six national parties collectively reported receiving Rs 2,669.87 crore in donations and contributions, with only Congress (Rs 58.56 crore) and CPI(M) (Rs 11.32 crore) declaring income from the sale of coupons. The audit reports of BJP, CPI(M), and Congress were submitted late, with delays ranging from 12 to 66 days.