Electoral Bonds | The Biggest Scam in History of India? | Explained by Dhruv Rathee

Summary

The video script discusses the Electoral Bond Scam in India, alleging it as the largest scam in the nation's history, involving a network of corruption where political parties receive kickbacks in exchange for business opportunities. It criticizes the Modi government's introduction of the Electoral Bonds Scheme, which it claims was used to hide the identity of donors and facilitate this corruption. The script also highlights several instances of companies involved in questionable activities that have benefited from government contracts after making political donations, suggesting a direct link between donations and state favors.

Takeaways

• 📢 The script discusses a major scam involving the Electoral Bond Scheme in India, which the speaker claims is the biggest in the country's history.
• 🏦 The Electoral Bond Scheme was introduced in 2017 by the Modi government as a means for political parties to collect funds, but it was criticized for its lack of transparency.
• 🤫 The scheme was designed to keep the identities of donors and the amounts given to political parties hidden from the public.
• 🏛️ The Supreme Court of India declared the Electoral Bond Scheme unconstitutional after seven years, leading to the gradual revelation of associated scams.
• 📉 Home Minister Amit Shah's claim about the distribution of Electoral Bonds funds was challenged, with discrepancies between his statements and official data.
• 💼 Large companies implicated in the scam were allegedly involved in tax evasion and other illegal activities, with the government turning a blind eye in exchange for political donations.
• 🛠️ Companies that donated through Electoral Bonds were sometimes awarded public contracts and projects, suggesting a quid-pro-quo arrangement.
• 🔑 The script alleges that the government had access to information about every donating company, potentially using this as leverage against opposition parties.
• 🗳️ The Supreme Court's decision to declare the scheme unconstitutional was in response to a petition filed by political parties and NGOs advocating for transparency in political funding.
• 📊 The data released post the Supreme Court's ruling showed a significant portion of Electoral Bonds were encashed by the BJP, with other parties receiving much smaller shares.
• 🚫 Some political parties, such as CPI, CPI-M, All-India Forward Bloc, and CPI-ML, refused to accept Electoral Bonds on principle, highlighting a divide in the approach to political funding.

Q & A

What is the Electoral Bond Scam mentioned in the script?

The Electoral Bond Scam refers to a series of alleged fraudulent activities involving the misuse of the Electoral Bonds Scheme introduced by the Modi government in 2017. The scheme allowed anonymous political donations, which critics argue facilitated corruption and kickbacks in exchange for political favors and business opportunities.

How were the citizens of India allegedly robbed of their money according to the script?

The script suggests that the citizens were robbed of their money through a series of scams, primarily the Electoral Bond Scam, where political parties allegedly received kickbacks in exchange for business opportunities, leading to a misuse of public funds and a lack of transparency in political funding.

What is the significance of the coupon code HOLI50 mentioned in the script?

The coupon code HOLI50 is a promotional offer for two courses on Dhruv Rathee Academy, providing a 50% discount on the ChatGPT course and Time Management Course. The offer is valid until 31st March and is part of the Holi celebration promotion.

What does the script claim about the Supreme Court's stance on the Electoral Bonds Scheme?

The script states that the Supreme Court declared the Electoral Bonds Scheme unconstitutional after seven years, recognizing that it violated citizens' right to information and was used for obtaining kickbacks, thus going against the principles of democracy.

How much money did the BJP receive through Electoral Bonds according to the script?

According to the script, the BJP received ₹60 billion through Electoral Bonds between April 2019 and January 2024, which is about 47.5% of the total bonds encashed during that period.

What was the discrepancy in the total bonds sold as mentioned by Home Minister Amit Shah and the actual figures?

Home Minister Amit Shah claimed that the total bonds sold were worth ₹200 billion, with BJP receiving only ₹60 billion. However, the script points out that according to ECI data, the actual total value of bonds issued and encashed was ₹127 billion, not ₹200 billion.

What is the role of the Unique Alphanumeric Number on the Electoral Bonds as discussed in the script?

The Unique Alphanumeric Number on each Electoral Bond is a secret identifier visible only under ultraviolet light. It was initially claimed by the government that this number was only a security feature and would not reveal the identity of the buyer. However, the script suggests that this number could potentially be used to track donations, contradicting the government's claims of anonymity.

What is the script's view on the role of ED and CBI in relation to the Electoral Bonds Scheme?

The script suggests that agencies like ED (Enforcement Directorate) and CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) have become tools of the government, potentially being used to harass companies that do not provide kickbacks through electoral bonds or to give a free pass to those that do.

What examples of fraud are given in the script related to the Electoral Bonds Scheme?

The script provides examples such as tax evasion by companies, awarding of contracts to companies with a history of safety violations or financial irregularities, and the excessive payment to certain companies for public projects, all allegedly linked to their contributions through electoral bonds.

What is the significance of the companies Megha Engineering and Vedanta in the context of the script?

Megha Engineering and Vedanta are highlighted in the script as companies that have allegedly made significant political donations through electoral bonds and subsequently received lucrative government contracts, suggesting a quid pro quo arrangement.

How does the script describe the impact of the Electoral Bonds Scheme on democracy and public funds?

The script argues that the Electoral Bonds Scheme has negatively impacted democracy by allowing for opaque political funding and potential corruption. It also suggests that public funds have been misused, with companies receiving government contracts in possible exchange for political donations, thereby diverting resources away from public welfare.

Outlines

00:00

😱 Electoral Bond Scandal: India's Biggest Extortion Racket

The script discusses the Electoral Bond Scam in India, which is described as the largest scam in the country's history, involving a collection of scams and an extortion racket. The introduction of the Electoral Bonds Scheme by the Modi government in 2017 is criticized for being a means to collect kickbacks for political parties, with transactions hidden from the public. The Supreme Court's eventual ruling that the scheme is unconstitutional and the gradual revelation of scams over the past seven years are highlighted. The Home Minister's misleading statements about the distribution of bond funds and the actual data from the Election Commission of India (ECI) are contrasted to show discrepancies. The summary emphasizes the misuse of public funds and the undermining of democracy.

05:01

📢 Unveiling the Electoral Bond Scheme: A Media Complicity?

This paragraph delves into the propagation of misinformation about the Electoral Bond Scheme by high-ranking politicians and media outlets. It recounts how BJP politician R.P. Singh and others repeated Amit Shah's false claims about the distribution of bond funds. The role of the media, including ANI, Dainik Jagran, and India Today, is scrutinized for publishing these unverified claims. The paragraph explains how electoral bonds function as a mechanism for political donations, using the example of journalist Poonam Agarwal's investigation which revealed a secret unique alphanumeric number on each bond, contradicting the government's claims of anonymity for buyers. The paragraph also discusses the implications of this revelation, including the potential for government surveillance and control over opposition parties through the use of electoral bonds.

10:01

🏛 Supreme Court's Verdict on Electoral Bonds: A Blow to Secrecy

The third paragraph outlines the Supreme Court's intervention in the Electoral Bond Scheme, emphasizing its decision as a response to a petition filed by the CPI(M) and other NGOs. The Court's ruling is highlighted for its significance in upholding citizens' right to information about political donations and expressing concern over the potential for kickbacks. The Court's directive to the State Bank of India (SBI) to release data on electoral bonds is detailed, including the initial reluctance and eventual compliance of SBI. The publication of the data on the ECI's website and the subsequent revelation of donor and recipient information is summarized, noting the selective disclosure by SBI and the Supreme Court's rebuke for it. The paragraph concludes by acknowledging political parties that voluntarily disclosed their donor lists and those that have never accepted electoral bonds on principle.

15:03

🤝 The Nexus of Political Donations, Contracts, and Scams

This paragraph explores the practical implications of the Electoral Bond Scheme, focusing on the alleged quid pro quo between political donations and the awarding of contracts. It uses the metaphor of a 'box' to represent the flow of money from the public to companies and then to political parties through electoral bonds, framing this transaction as a scam. The paragraph provides examples of companies involved in tax evasion and other illegal activities that allegedly received favorable treatment from the government in exchange for political donations. It also discusses the criteria for awarding government contracts and how the process may have been compromised, citing specific instances of companies that received contracts despite their involvement in accidents and controversies.

20:05

🏗️ The High Cost of Corruption: Mega Projects and Electoral Bonds

The final paragraph presents specific cases of companies that have allegedly bought electoral bonds and subsequently received lucrative government contracts, suggesting a connection between political donations and the awarding of public projects. It details the involvement of companies like Megha Engineering, Vedanta, and others in major infrastructure projects, some of which have faced controversy due to cost overruns, environmental concerns, and allegations of corruption. The paragraph also mentions the case of Future Gaming, a lottery company, and its connection to political figures. The summary concludes by inviting viewers to request a detailed video on these scams and reminding them of a special Holi offer for the speaker's courses.

Keywords

💡Electoral Bond Scam

The Electoral Bond Scam refers to a series of alleged fraudulent activities involving the misuse of electoral bonds in India. The term is central to the video's theme, which discusses the scandal as a significant corruption issue. The script mentions it as 'the biggest scam in the history of independent India' and elaborates on how it operates as a collection of scams, including the misuse of public funds and the provision of business opportunities in exchange for kickbacks.

💡Kickbacks

Kickbacks are illegal payments made in return for favors or services, often related to corruption or bribery. In the context of the video, kickbacks are portrayed as a key component of the Electoral Bond Scam, where companies allegedly make political donations in exchange for business opportunities or to avoid legal repercussions for their wrongdoings, such as tax evasion.

💡Extortion

Extortion is the practice of obtaining money or other items of value through force or threats. The video uses this term to describe how the government allegedly pressures companies into making political donations under the guise of avoiding legal action for their illegal activities, thus highlighting a form of political corruption.

💡ED's Mechanism

ED's Mechanism refers to the Enforcement Directorate, a law enforcement agency in India responsible for enforcing economic laws and preventing evasion of taxes. The script implies that the ED is used as a tool for political leverage, where companies that do not provide kickbacks can be targeted with legal action.

💡Political Donations

Political donations are contributions made by individuals, corporations, or other entities to political parties or candidates. The video discusses the controversial nature of these donations when they are potentially linked to corruption, such as in the Electoral Bond Scam, where donations may be made with the expectation of receiving favors in return.

💡Taxes

Taxes are compulsory financial charges or some other type of imposition imposed by a governmental organization on individuals or other entities. The script discusses tax evasion by companies and the government's alleged complicity in overlooking these illegal activities in exchange for political donations.

💡Public Funds

Public funds refer to money collected by the government from taxpayers and meant for the welfare and development of the public. The video script suggests that public funds are being misused in the Electoral Bond Scam, with the government allegedly diverting these funds to companies that make political donations.

💡Supreme Court

The Supreme Court is the highest judicial body in India, responsible for upholding the constitution and ensuring justice. The video mentions the Supreme Court's role in declaring the Electoral Bond Scheme unconstitutional after seven years, indicating its importance in addressing the scam.

💡Citizen's Right to Information

Citizen's Right to Information is a fundamental right that allows citizens to access information held by public authorities. The Supreme Court, as mentioned in the script, emphasized this right in the context of the Electoral Bond Scam, stating that citizens should know about the donations made to political parties and by whom.

💡Business Opportunities

Business opportunities in the video refer to the contracts or projects awarded by the government to certain companies, potentially in exchange for political donations. The script suggests a quid pro quo arrangement where companies that donate receive lucrative government contracts.

💡Tender and Kickbacks Model

The Tender and Kickbacks Model is a system where companies allegedly secure government contracts through the payment of kickbacks. The video script describes this model as a prevalent practice in the Electoral Bond Scam, where companies secure tenders by making political donations.

Highlights

The Electoral Bond Scam in India is described as the biggest scam in the nation's history, involving a collection of scams and an extortion racket.

Amit Shah's statement about the distribution of ₹200 billion in electoral bonds is challenged, with BJP receiving only ₹60 billion and the rest unaccounted for.

The Supreme Court of India declared the Electoral Bonds Scheme unconstitutional after seven years, revealing a series of financial scandals.

Electoral Bonds were introduced in 2017 as a means for political parties to collect kickbacks, with transactions kept hidden from the public.

Poonam Agarwal's investigative journalism exposed the secret Unique Alphanumeric Numbers on electoral bonds, contradicting government claims of anonymity.

The Supreme Court's decision emphasized citizens' right to know about political donations and expressed concern over the scheme's use for kickbacks.

SBI was ordered to release full data on electoral bonds, revealing a connection between donations and business opportunities for certain companies.

Political parties like CPI, CPI-M, and others have been commended for not accepting electoral bonds on principle, standing against the scheme.

The scam involves a cycle of government taking from public funds, giving to companies, and companies 'donating' back through electoral bonds.

Examples of companies involved in tax evasion and illegal activities are highlighted, suggesting a quid-pro-quo relationship with the government.

The role of government agencies like ED and CBI as potential puppets of the government is discussed, with implications for the transparency of electoral bonds.

The impact of the scam on public services such as salaries, recruitment, and infrastructure is outlined, showing the direct effects on citizens.

Instances of companies receiving government projects despite being involved in serious accidents and legal issues are presented.

The case of Future Gaming, a lottery company, is mentioned, with its connection to the Finance Minister and its involvement in electoral bonds.

The video concludes with a call to action for viewers to demand transparency and accountability in political funding, and to comment for further detailed videos on the topic.

Transcripts

Hello, friends!

You have been robbed of you money.

In fact, every citizen in our nation has been robbed of their money.

This is probably the biggest scam in the history of independent India.

You may think that I am exaggerating things,

but that is not the case.

The thing is that this Electoral Bond Scam

is not a standalone scam,

but a collection of scams.

The list of scams is so long that

you will be tired of counting.

Not only this, it happens to be the biggest extortion racket in the country.

Let's understand what exactly happened in this video.

Before starting the video, I would like to make a small announcement.

We're celebrating Holi now,

so on this occasion, both the courses on Dhruv Rathee Academy

will be available at flat 50% off.

For both the ChatGPT course and Time Management Course,

use the coupon code HOLI50

You will get 50% off.

But this offer is valid only till 31st March.

The link to the website is in the description below.

If you want to summarise this entire collection of scams in one line,

then you can do it like this.

You give me kickbacks,

I will give you business opportunities,

and if you don't give me kickbacks,

I will trap you with ED's mechanism.

I have talked about this "tenders and kickbacks" model in many of my previous videos

but now we have direct evidence of it.

It was in 2017 when the Modi government introduced this Electoral Bonds Scheme

and made it a means of collecting kickbacks

for political parties.

"Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today announced

the contours of Electoral Bonds for funding of political parties."

Every action under this scheme would be hidden from the masses.

Which companies pay what amount to which parties

citizens weren't permitted to know this.

People who were following this news back then,

had understood that this would lead to a major financial scandal.

Seven years ago, I made a video on this,

where I voiced my concerns.

"22nd March, 2017

The day Corruption became legal in India.

Companies won't need to reveal which political parties they would be funding."

We should thank the Supreme Court

for declaring this scheme to be unconstitutional after 7 years.

And all these scams that took place in these 7 years,

are now being revealed gradually.

Recently, in the India Today conclave,

Home Minister Amit Shah openly lied about the Electoral Bonds.

He said that total bonds sold were worth ₹200 billion,

out of which BJP got only ₹60 billion.

So, who got the remaining ₹140 billion?

"The BJP got approximately ₹60 billion through the Bonds.

Total bonds sold were about ₹200 billion.

So, where did the Bonds worth ₹140 billion go?"

There was a TV news anchor sitting with him,

who chose to remain silent.

Either he forgot or he didn't have the courage

to fact-check Amit Shah.

As per ECI data,

the total bonds issued were not worth ₹200 billion but of ₹127 billion.

The ones encashed between April 2019 and January 2024.

Out of this ₹120 billion, BJP received ₹60 billion.

It is about 47.5%.

During the same period, the party that ranked second on the list

was the Trinamool Congress which got Bonds worth ₹16 billion.

It is 12.6%.

Congress was at the 3rd spot with ₹14 billion,

approximately 11.1%

but let me just read out the rest of the list.

4th was BRS with ₹12 billion.

5th was BJD with ₹7 billion,

6th was DMK with ₹6 billion,

YSR with ₹3 billion,

TDP ₹2 billion,

Shiv Sena with ₹1.5 billion

and the other parties RJD, AAP, JDS, SKM, NCP,

all of them got about ₹300 to ₹700 million.

After seeing this list,

many BJP politicians and their paid influencers

make excuses that BJP is a national party,

with more than 300 MPs, and numerous MLAs,

and thousands of party workers,

so them getting so much money should be justified.

And if we calculate the ratio of money received per MP,

then this ratio of BJP is lower than that of other parties.

They claim that this means BJP is not as bad as other parties.

*Does this make any sense?*

As I told you earlier,

the scam is about providing business opportunities in exchange for kickbacks.

Or having ED take action against them in case no kickbacks are provided.

But in itself,

giving or receiving political donations

is not a scam.

Anyone can donate to political parties.

But if they are given any contract in return for their donation,

if they are paid with the people's tax money,

and the companies which don't give such donations,

are harassed by the ED,

then it becomes a scam, a fraud.

Now think about it, if Vijay Mallya or Nirav Modi say that

because they have large companies, and employ many people,

it's justified that they stole from the banks.

Because on a "per employee fraud" calculation

they are not significant criminals.

People don't object to Vijay Mallya earning a lot of money.

There's nothing wrong with earning money.

The objection arises only when public fund is stolen to earn that money.

Similarly, no one has a problem with why BJP accepted political donations.

The problem is that to get these 'donations,'

they created a vast extortion racket,

shattered the principles of democracy,

and stole the nation's public funds.

Amit Shah's bold-faced lie

was repeated by the BJP politician R.P. Singh.

"In total, there were ₹200 billion worth of Electoral Bonds.

Out of this, ₹60 billion went to BJP

and ₹140 billion went to the opposition."

"Lie, and keep lying."

And then ANI, Dainik Jagran, India Today,

they published this lie without checking.

Forget about catching lies,

India Today's headline talked about,

Amit Shah blasting opposition.

And then these entities wonder

why they are called the government's puppet media.

This is why.

Before going into the details of the fraud,

let's understand how these Electoral Bonds worked?

Friends, you can basically think of an electoral bond

as a coupon.

The company paid the bank

to buy these coupons.

The coupon was then given to the political parties

and the political parties could redeem the coupons.

And they could access the money paid to in the bank.

The rule said that if any political party

did not encash the electoral bond they received,

if they didn't redeem the coupon,

then within 15 days,

the money paid to purchase the unclaimed bond

would be transferred to the Prime Minister's Relief Fund.

When this electoral bond scheme was launched,

there was a journalist who decided to investigate this in detail.

And to test this, she bought two electoral bonds.

This journalist was Poonam Agarwal.

She went to the SBI's Parliament Branch

and on 5th April and 9th April 2018,

she bought two electoral bonds.

Both were priced at ₹1,000 each.

She was working for the Quint Media Organisation at that time.

You can check out the video she uploaded on her channel.

The buyer's name was not mentioned on the electoral bond.

Neither did it mention any other detail about who bought it.

Both bonds looked to be exactly the same.

"There is no difference except the date.

Written in red here.

Here, it is written 5th April

and here it is written 9th April.

Apart from these two things,

there is no difference between the bonds."

But when she sent one of the bonds for forensic testing,

it was revealed that every bond

has a secret Unique Alphanumeric Number.

This secret number was visible only under ultraviolet light.

This was shocking because

this fact revealed another lie by the Modi government.

The government had been claiming that anyone buying the electoral bonds,

would not be identified, their identity would be hidden.

No one would know who bought this bond.

When Miss Agarwal proved this, the Finance Ministry had to openly acknowledge

that there were secret unique numbers on the bonds.

But they also claimed that

this number was only a security feature.

And that the donations would not be tracked through this number

and the identity of the buyer could not be ascertained.

The then Finance Minister, the late Arun Jaitley,

used this point as a defense in Parliament's Debate.

He reassured the opposition parties

that they don't need to worry,

no one would find out the identity of the donor,

or the source of the donations.

He said that their government is so benevolent that

they think of even the opposition while making laws.

But guess what?

This was another lie spewed by the Modi government.

"Lie, and keep lying."

Retired Navy Officer Lokesh Batra filed an RTI

and he received a file from the Finance Ministry.

Some other records were reviewed by HuffPost India.

In all these, the SBI explained that

without recording the serial numbers,

it will not be possible to create an audit trail.

How will the bank know whether

a bond has been forged or not?

Someone could take a fake bond to be encashed.

Then in January 2018, a notification was issued

that stated in the Section 6(4)

that the SBI has to provide the details of the electoral bond

to any law enforcement agency

if they ask for it.

If SBI did not keep such details,

if the donor details had to be actually masked,

then how would this rule work?

This meant that if ED or CBI wanted

they could have easily found out which company donated which Electoral Bond.

Do you understand its implications, friends?

As we already know, agencies like ED and CBI,

have become the government's puppets.

With this, three things were clear.

First, the public was supposed to remain unaware

of which political party receives how much political donations,

which companies make political donations,

and how much they pay.

The citizens weren't supposed to know any information.

Second, the opposition political parties weren't supposed to know

which companies gave donations to BJP

and how much.

They would have known about the donations they received.

And third, the BJP government had the means to find out everything.

Who is giving political donations, how much are they paying,

and to which political parties.

The government had access to the information about every donating company.

For Modi government, it became a secret weapon against the opposition.

And most of the opposition parties didn't know anything about it

until recently.

On 15th February, when the Supreme Court declared this scheme unconstitutional,

it was because of a petition.

A petition filed by the CPI(M) political party

and NGOs Common Cause and Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR).

Advocate Prashant Bhushan

was arguing on their behalf

against this scheme.

So, these are some of the organisations and people

whom we should thank

who led to this scam being unearthed.

The Supreme Court had a lot to say about this scheme,

but two things were immensely significant.

First, the citizens have the right to know

about the quantum of the donations given to political parties

and who makes these donations.

This Electoral Bond Scheme went against the citizen's right to information.

And second, the Supreme Court expressed its concern

about how this scheme was used to get kickbacks.

The court said that these contributions can be classified purely as business transactions.

Companies are donating to get some benefits in return.

Based on all of all this,

the Court directed SBI to release the data.

*Show me your account book.*

*Account for the damage you caused to the nation.*

In the beginning, SBI came up with excuses

about how it will take 3 months to collate the data,

it can be disclosed only after the elections.

But the Court refused to show any leniency

and the data was released within 2 days.

Eventually, this data was published on the website of the Election Commission.

The data published on ECI's website

is in the form of 2 lists.

The first list tells us which companies and persons

bought electoral bonds, and how the value of their bonds.

And the second list tells us which political parties

encashed the Electoral Bonds and how much did they get.

But SBI was sly and didn't reveal the secret numbers.

Without them, it wasn't possible to connect the two lists exactly.

Once again, they tried to hide information from the public.

Once again, the Supreme Court rebuked SBI

for publishing selectively data.

It directed SBI to publish the full data by 21st March.

The other political parties in the country

had the list of donors who donated to them.

They knew about the source of donation they received.

So, 10 political parties revealed their list to the people.

They revealed their data publicly,

without waiting for SBI to do so.

These parties included Samajwadi Party, Aam Aadmi Party, National Congress Party,

JD(U), JD(S), DMK, AIADMK,

JKNC, a party from Goa, MGP

and SDF from Sikkim.

I would also like to mention that 4 political parties went above and beyond,

who never accepted electoral bonds

as a matter of principle.

They are CPI, CPI-M, All-India Forward Bloc, and CPI-ML.

These parties can be criticised on other issues,

but their stand on this issue is commendable.

The parties which accepted the Electoral Bonds

their leaders claim that

they accepted these bonds

because they wanted to utilise the scheme that was already there.

So that their donors do not have to face any problems.

Anyway, merely taking donations does not mean that it is a scam.

"You will say that we benefited from electoral bonds too.

But we are not in the position where

we can award contracts,

or sell public sector companies,

or extort others using ED and CBI."

"Bonds will be bought by rich people.

Only the contractors, traders, or industrialists will be rich enough for this.

They'll be the ones to buy these."

So, now that you have understood the theory,

now let's get to the practical.

Let's talk about the frauds.

In these frauds, three entities are involved.

First, the political party in power,

it can be BJP's central government

or any other party that forms the state government.

Second, large companies which made political donations trough the electoral bond.

And third, the common masses, the public.

Let's put a box under them.

The box under political party has the political donations.

The box under the company has the company's money.

And the box under the people contain public funds.

The money collected from people as taxes or otherwise.

Now imagine if the government takes money from the citizens' box

and puts it in the company's box.

And in return, the company takes money from its box

and puts it in the party's box through electoral bonds.

Would you call this a scam or not?

Obviously, it is a scam.

In Haryana, there is a folktale of a Gyani thief

who steals money from the rich

and gives it to the poor.

Like, Robin Hood.

But scams run under the guise of electoral bonds

the poor people, the common masses were being robbed,

and the money was given to the rich.

Let's understand exactly how it was being done with 3 examples.

First tax evasion,

the companies which don't pay taxes properly.

Not paying taxes means that money doesn't get to the public fund box.

This means that government employees won't get their salaries on time.

There won't be recruitment for government jobs,

the conditions of government schools and hospitals cannot be improved.

Because the public funds that were supposed to be used for the welfare of the people

aren't coming in.

Now in case, a company is not paying its taxes,

what should the government do?

Should it raid the premises of the company?

But instead of raiding, think about it,

if the two make a deal.

In exchange for giving political donations to their political party,

the government wouldn't take action about the tax evasions.

The company will be given a free pass.

The government will let them continue their illegal activities,

and ED will simply remain quiet.

*Try to understand the chronology.*

Look at the Top 5 donor companies on the list of electoral bonds.

Three of these five companies are

Future Gaming,

Megha Engineering,

and the mining giant, Vedanta.

ED and the Income Tax Department had raided all three companies.

In fact, when The Quint analysed the top 30 donors it was found that

14 of the Top 30 companies

were raided by the agencies.

Now, one possibility is that

the companies hadn't done anything wrong,

the companies were working honestly.

But in this possibility, the government did not care

whether the company followed the law of not,

and they told the companies to pay up.

Basically, what the government did is called extortion.

This is why Congress politician Rahul Gandhi

called PM Modi, Vasuli Bhai. [Someone who runs an extortion racket.]

But the second possibility could be that

the company had actually committed money laundering,

it was involved in illegal activities,

and the government found out about the money laundering, tax evasion,

the company stealing public funds,

but did not actually have an issue with it,

as long as the company paid a part of the benefits to the party.

Now some people may say that

even if the government extorts money from such companies

it doesn't actually affect us.

The first problem is that

government's money is the citizen's money,

rules have been made on how the government should spend that money.

Rule 21 of the General Financial Rules states that

a public officer should be as cautious while spending public money

as a sane person would be while spending his own money.

The government cannot award a contract for any public project to a company at will.

While issuing Tender Notice,

various criteria for eligibility are mentioned.

The minimum level of experience of the company.

The past performance of the company.

Whether the company has the technical capability to properly complete the project.

The state of the manufacturing facilities of the company.

The financial position of the company.

Only after evaluating all these, is a contract awarded to a company.

To the candidate who can hand in the best quality of work.

The candidate who will charge the appropriate price for it.

They shouldn't be overcharging

while the tax money is being wrongfully utilised.

Now you will remember the tunnel collapse in Uttarakhand,

41 workers were trapped in it.

Do you know which company was given the contract to build that tunnel?

Navayuga Engineering Company Limited.

Between 2019 and 2022, this company

bought electoral bonds to the tune of ₹550 million,

Let me tell you another story.

In December 2021, an under- construction flyover fell in Ahmedabad.

This flyover was being built by the company Ranjit Buildcon.

This was the third incident involving the same company.

In the inquiry, it was found that

this company had compromised on the quality of the concrete and construction.

But did you know that this company

was given multiple projects by Gujarat's civic bodies.

Vadodara, Rajkot, Surat,

Ahmedabad's Gandhinagar metro rail project

were awarded to it.

These were the business opportunities but where is the kickback?

According to the list, between January and July 2023,

this company bought electoral bonds worth ₹90 million.

Let's see another example,

Pune-based company BG Shirke Construction Private Limited.

Between January 2023 and January 2024,

it purchased electoral bonds for ₹1.18 billion.

But one year before this, in June 2022,

an FIR was registered against this company

for causing de@th by negligence.

Because at the housing project construction site of this company,

4 people d!ed in an elevator crash.

Before this, in October 2018, there was another incident.

At the construction site of this company,

4 people lost their lives when they fell from the tower crane.

You can see that a political party doesn't care about your life.

As long as they get their share.

*Let them shout if they want to.

They'll shout till they get tired,

and then they will forget.*

Look at the company Megha Engineering.

Between 2019 and 2023,

It bought electoral bonds to the tune of ₹9.66 billion.

Such a huge amount!

Almost ₹10 billion!

Why would a company want to donate so much money to a political party?

Three more companies were associated with this.

Western UP Power Transmission Company Limited,

SEPC Power,

and Evey Trans Private Limited.

If you add up all the electoral bonds they purchased,

it is more than ₹12 billion.

What did they get in return?

In June 2019, Telangana's Chief Minister Chandrashekhar Rao

inaugurated the Kaleshwaram Multipurpose Irrigation Project.

In February 2024, the CAG submitted a report

which revealed that initially the estimated cost of this project

was ₹810 billion.

But now it costs more than ₹14.7 trillion.

In another report, the CAG stated that

Megha Engineering was paid ₹51.80 billion

in excess for four packages.

It included the supply and commissioning of pumps, motors, and equipment.

CAG also stated that apart from Megha Engineering

there were other contractors like L&T and Navayuga Engineering.

If we look at the combined amount for all of them

these contractors had received

at least ₹75 billion

in extended undue benefits.

The report also states that

the government seemed to be in a hurry to hand out these projects.

17 different projects worth ₹250 billion

were awarded before receiving the detailed project report.

Not only that, in October 2020,

the National Green Tribunal raised red flags about this project.

The NGT said that the environmental clearance given to this project was illegal.

Since this was happening in Telangana,

where the BRS party is in power,

so Congress and BJP both said that

this Bahubali project has become a cesspool of corruption.

But, here comes the plot twist.

"The Zojila tunnel..."

Here, BJP's Nitin Gadkari is talking about the Zojila tunnel.

It connects Srinagar and Leh.

"This was approved by your government.

In this tender, the company which won the contract,

5 entities had submitted their bids,

This was awarded to a company in Hyderabad, Megha Engineering."

Multiple companies bid for it.

But in August 2020,

a small company from Hyderabad

got this contract worth ₹45 billion.

Which company?

Megha Engineering.

Look at another project.

Thane-Borivali Twin Tunnel.

Mumbai's MMRDA floated a tender

for two packages to build this tunnel.

In April 2023, Megha Engineering

purchased electoral bonds worth ₹1.4 billion.

And in the next month, in May 2023,

Megha Engineering was awarded this project worth ₹144 billion.

This is the same company

that was raided by the Income Tax Department in October 2019.

But after that, the list clearly shows

the billions of rupees of electoral bonds it bought between 2019 to 2024.

And in this time period,

one after another, projects were awarded to it.

Not only by the state government of Telangana,

but also by Modi's central government.

In June 2023,

according to this article, this company

was given a project worth ₹5 billion by the Defence Ministry.

Friends, everything that I have told you till now,

is just the tip of the iceberg.

Apart from this, there is a strange case

of a company named Future Gaming.

A lottery company.

When this company was being raided by central agencies,

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman was tweeting photos

of her meeting with the Lottery King's son.

Apart from this, there are some cases

where Beef Exporting Companies bought Electoral Bonds

to give donations to the parties.

This case should be a wake-up call for those people

who vote for this party for their religious affiliation.

Then there are cases of mining giants

Vedanta, EMIL,

GHCL, MSPL,

and how they have been accused of bending environmental rules.

There is a case of Qwik Supply Chain

with the same directors

as in Mukesh Ambani's company, Reliance.

Looking at the list, it is clear that

this company bought electoral bonds worth more than its net profit.

It was paying more in political donations than it profits.

But for now, I think this video is too long already.

So let's talk about these cases in the next episode.

If you want me to make a detailed video of each of these scams,

let me know in the comments.

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